Glass 
Book 



DISCOURSES 



ON THE . M — 



PARABLE 



OF THE 



SOWER 



Br 



SAMUEL STENNETT, D.D. 



TAKE HEED HOW YE HEAR. Luke viii. 1 8. 



A NEW EDITION. 



EDINBURGH : 
MINTED FOR OGLE & AIRMAN J M, OGLE, GLASGOW £ 
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l8oi. 



. ADVERTISEMENT, 



The utility ofa compendious view of a 
parable, in order to a clear underftanding 
of its general import, and a right improve- 
ment of its feveral parts ; muft ftrike eve- 
ry thoughtful perfon. This was the au- 
thor's reafon for prefixing fo large a table 
of contents to the following plain dif- 
courfes. The reader will, therefore, great- 
ly oblige him by attentively looking over 
the contents, before he perufes the fer- 
mons ft - 



CON- 



CONTENTS. 



DISCOURSE I, 

Of Parables in general ; and the leading Ideas cf 
this in particular. 

Mat. xuju 3. 

And he /pake many things unto them in parables ; fay '* 
tug. Behold a fower went forth to fow* 



PART I. 
Of Parables in general. 

Occafion of the parable — meaning eafy to be under- 
flood — how- this reconcileable with our Lord's rea- 
fon for addrefiing thefe people in parables — why he 
fo frequently adopted this mode of inft ruction- 
rules to affift in interpreting the parables — tempe- 
rate ufe of allegory highly proper — how abufed by 
fome public fpeakers — other abufes cf preaching— 
caufes of thefe evils-— common apologies for them 
futile— pernicious tendency of injudicious treatment 
of allegory— as alfo of mere declamatory preaching 
— addrefs to minifters. 



PART 



vi 



CONTENTS* 



PART IL 
The leading Ideas of the Parable. 

Our Saviour's grand objecT: to draw the char afters of 
four kinds of hearers— the inattentive— enthusi- 
astic-— worldly-minded— sincere— the leading i- 
deas to be firft of all explained— thefe are the Sow- 
er--~Seed"-GrQund-—Efft£i. 

I. By the Sower is meant minifters— their qualifica- 

tions, duty, and various fuccefs, defcribed. 

II. By the Seed is meant the Word of the Kingdom cr 
gofpel— Kingdom to be underftood of perfonal re- 
ligion, Chriftian difpenfation, heavenly flate — the 
word confidered in reference to each of thefe. 

J II. By the Ground is meant the foul of man— this, 
like the earth, in a different ftate now from what 
it was in the beginning— the natural and moral 
powers of the foul weakened and depraved — this 
confirmed by the different account our Lord gives 
of the feveral kinds of ground in which the feed 
was fown. 

IV. The general Procefs of the bufinefs expreffed or 
implied in the parable— how religion rifes into ex- 
igence and becomes fruitful, through the concur- 
rence of a divine influence, with the word difpen- 
fed by minifters, and the reafonings of the mind 
about it-.-- Reflections on the fubjefh 

DIS* 



CONTENTS* Vll 



DISCOURSE IL 
The Character of Inattentive Hearers considered. 
Mat. xiii. 4. 

And when he /owed, fome feeds fell by the way fide 9 
and the fowls of the air came and devoured them 
up. 

PART I, 

FIRST, The Inattentive. 
The figure explained — our Saviour's expofition of it— 
in which the following things obfervable — they hear 
the word — are only occajional hearers of it — not 
prepared for hearing it — hear it carelefsly — -under- 
fland it not — or have only a fpeculatroe knowledge 
of it — it makes no abiding imprejjion — how the im> 
predion effaced, The wicked one cometh s and catch- 
eth away that which was fown in their hearts, left 
they Jhould believe and be faved. Three things to 
be confidered — who the wicked one is, and why fo 
called-— what meant by his catching away the feed, 
and how this done— what the malevolent end pro- 
pofed. 

I. Who the wicked one is— Satan or the Devi/- —the 
Scripture account of him-— from his character and 
works properly denominated the wicked one. 

II. What meant by his caicoing away the feed, and 
how this done— he hath accefs to the mind— this 
proved — but cannot force men to fin againfe. their 
confent— righteous in God to permit him to catch 
away the feed from thefe hearers— this done, 

x» By 



%W CONTENTS* 

1. By diverting men's attention from the Word, 

2. By exciting prejudices agakift it. 

3. By preventing their recollecting it afterwards, 

PART II. 

III. "What the malevolent end Satan propofes by 
catching away the word — left they Jhould believe 
and be faved — Mere, in order to ronfe men's atten- 
tion, and' to- guard them agamfl: the artifices of Sa- 
tan, it is neceffary to enquire what Faith is — to de- 
fer! be the Salvation promifed to them who believe 
—and to (hew the Connexion between the one and 
the other. 

FIRST, What Faith is — the term defined, the quali- 
ties accompanying it defcribed — the characters of 
the real and nominal believer contrafted. 

SECOND, What the Solvation promifed to them 
who believe— the mo ft glorious— a deliverance from 
—-moral --natural-— penal evil— with the enjoyment 
of the oppofite good in its higheft perfection. 

THIRD, What the Connexion between faith and 
falvation — its indifpeniible neceffity arifes— from the 
divine appointment— and the reafon and nature of 
the thing, 

Faith comes by hearing— hence the artifices of Satan 
to divert men's attention from the word, and to pre- 
vent its falutary effect upon their hearts— the awful 
confequences of impenitejice and unbelief— Reflec- 
tions on the fubjeci. 



DIS. 



CONTENTS. 



DISCOURSE III. 

The Chara&er of Enthufiaftic Hearers conirdered. 

Mat, xlii. 5, 6. 
Some fell upon ftony places, where they had not much 
earth : and forthwith they fprung up, becaufe they 
had no deepn f of earth. And when the fun was 
vpi they were fcorched, and becaufe they had not 
rooty they withered away* 

PART I. 

SECOND, The Enthusiastic. 
On thefe hearers, the word, to appearance, hath an in- 
stantaneous and mighty effect, but they reap no real 
advantage from it— our Lord's expofition of this 
part of the parable — four things here to be confi- 
dered — the character of thefe hearers, previous to 
their hearing the word — the effect, it inftantly pro- 
duces on their minds— their failure afterwards— the 
caufe of their apoftafy. 

I. Their Character previous to their hearing the word 
—their hearts compared to ftony or rocky groufid, 
on account of their depravity— their paiuons to the 
fine mould cad over r$ on account of their warmth 
and iivelinefs— the ill effect of an heated imagina- 

„ tion, under the conducl of a depraved heart, fhewri 
—the character of the enthufiaft more particularly 
defcribed. 

II. The Ejfccl the word inftantly produces on their j 
minds, as defcribed by our Saviour — they receive it— 
receive it immediately — receive it with joy — this paf- 

fiorx 



CONTENTS. 



fion defined — the joy of the enthunaft diftinguims^ 
ble from that of the real Chriftian, 

1. By what precedes it. 

2. By what excites it* 

3. By the effects of it. 

Having thus received the word, he with great zeaf 
profefles it — but after a while apoftatizes — addrefs 
to perfons of this character— a caution againft fup~ 
pofing the pafilons have little or no concern in reli- 
gion—the real but timorous Chriftian encouraged* 

PART IL 

HI. The Apojlafy of thefe hearers confidered — the 
feed having fprung up, in a little time withers away 
— fo thefe hearers having endured for a while fall 
away. 

1. The term of their profeffion Jhort — the real 
Chriftian advances by degrees towards perfec- 
tion — thefe quickly arrive at the zenith of 
their glory. 

2. The manner in which their profcflion is renoun* 
ced — fome lilently quit it — others publicly re- 
nounce it. 

IV. The Caufe of their Apoftafy. 

1. Something wanted within— the feed had no 
deepnefs of earth~-no*root— lacked vioijlure*.— 
fo thefe profeffors have no principle of religion 
in their hearts. 

2. A concurrence of circumftances without, un- 
favourable to their profeflion — the fcorching 
fun burns up the grafs — fo perfecution or tn* 
bulation arijin$, hecauft cf the word, they are 
offended- -the ftate of religion, as to external 

things^. 



CONTENTS. XI 

tilings, in early and prefent times— various ec- 

cafions of offence. 
Examples of fuch Apoftates — the five thoufand our 
Saviour fed with loaves and fifties- —the men of Na- 
zareth—the Jews who led him triumphantly into 
Jerufalem, and a day or two after crucified him— 
the Laodiceans— dicpreflion on Enthufiafm— not the 
offspring of religion, but of a particular cart of 
mind, or temperature of animal fpirits— common to 
men of all profeflions— Reflections on the fubject. 



DISCOURSE IV. 

The Character of Worldly-minded Hearers 
confidered. 

Mat. xHi. 7. 

jlnd fotr.e fell among thorns ; and the thorns Sprung 
up and cboaked them. 



PART I. 

THIRD, The Worldly-minded. 

The figure explained— -our Lord's expofition of it ; in 
which are obfervable, 1. The treatment the word 
meets with— they hear it— receive it— but bring no 
fruit to pcfeclion. 2. How its falutary operation 
is obfcrucled — they go forth- -the cares of the world, 
the deceitfulnefs oj riches, and the Iufls of other 
ihings, enter in- —they become unfruitful. 3. The 
event-— the thorns choke both the word and them. 

L The ob ft ructions themfelves confidered~-Ctfr£j— 
Riches- -pleafures* 

FIRST, 



CONTENTS. 

FIRST, Cares of the world— how far finful or 
otherwife — this (hewn by confidcring men's tem- 
poral interests in reference to — fubfiftence — coiru 
petence— affluence. 

SECOND, Riches — their deceitfulnefs — men rea- 
fon miftakenly about—- wealth itfelf— mode of ac- 
quiring it— terms of enjoying it. 

THIRD, Pleafures pleafure abftradledly confi- 
dered a real good— when criminal— worldly plea- 
fures various and faicinating, 
Addrefs to the — Careful — Covetous— Voluptuous. 

PART II, 

II. How cares, riches and pleafures operate to prevent 
the falutary effecl of God's w T ord — no profiting by 
the w T ord without conlidering it — three things ne= 
celfary to CQXi\\^tx2X\Q\\'-'Leifure^-Compofure—ln'< 

clination. 

FIRST, Leifure — ground choaked with thorns af- 
fords not room for the feed to expand and grow 
— fo fecular affairs deprive men of time for reli- 
gious meditation— time an ineftimable gift— a 
proper portion of it ought to be employed about 
religion. 

SECOND, Compofure -the neceffity of this to con- 
federation — how an undue attention to worldly 
things unfits the mind for the practice of this 
duty— this Ihewn in regard — of anxious cares 
— eap-er delire of riches — vehement thirft after 

o 

pleafures. 

THIRD, Inclination— tot?! averfion to religious 
confederation in bad men— too often a back- 
wardness to it in good men — the former con- 
firmed* 



CONTENTS. wU 

firmed, and the latter promoted, by an undue 

attachment to the world. 
TIL The fad event of fuch criminal commerce with 
the world— thefe hearers— underfl and not the word 
— do not believe It- --are not obedient to it — and fo-, 
like the feed choked by thorns, are in the end lofW 
Exhortations to profeffors of religion, 



DISCOURSE V. 
The Character of Sincere Hearers Confidered, 
Mat. xiii. 8. 

But other feeds fell into good ground, and brought forth 
fruit, feme an hundred fold, fame fixty fo/d, fame 
thirty fold. 

PART I 

FOURTH, The Sincere. 

The figure explained — our Saviour's expofiticn of it— 
thefe hearers have honefi and good hearts— hear the 
word after a djflrent manner from the otheis— 
underfland it—keep k— iring forth fruit— with pa- 
tience— -but in different degrees— Here propofed— 
to (hew the neceffity of the heart's being made ho- 
ned and good, in order to profiting-— defcribe the 
fruit which fuch bear — confider the variety in re- 
gard of degree and reafons of it---reprefent the blef- 
fednefs of fuch perfons. 

I. The necefjity of the hearths being made honefl and 
good — will and affections have a confiderable influ- 
ence on the understanding and judgment — gofpel 
humiliating to pride and difgufting to paflion for 
B worjdly 



XIV CONTENTS. 

worldly pleafure— hence oppofition to It— a n^r 
turn being given to the mind, it will be received ia 
the love of it — the importance of regeneration. 

II. The kind of fruit fuch bring forth defcribed— 
fruit the ground bears of the fame nature with the 
feed and the foil — nature and tendency of the gofpci 
confidered — what kind of man the Chriftian is,Jn 
regard of — piety — fecial — perfonal duties — no ab- 
folute perfection — yet a real difference between a 
good man and. a man of the world — Reflections. 

PART II. 

III. The variety there is among Chriftlans in regard 
of degrees of fruit fulnefs and the r eafons of it. 

FIRST, The faff ftated — fruitfulnefs confidered in 
regard of inward affections and e xternal -actio ns-»~ 
various characters among good men defcribed — 
various appearances of religion at different periods 
of life— -fcripture characters compared. 

SECOND, The reafons. of this difparity in refpect 
of the fruits of holinefs — worldly circumftances — . 
opportunity — mental abilities— different means of 
religion—comparative different ftate of it in one 
Chrirlian and another— greater or lefs effuflonof 
divine influences. 

IV. Blejfednefs of the fruitful Chr fiian — the pleafure 
that accompanies ingenuous obedience — fruitfulnefs 
affords a noble proof of uprightnefs — fach held in 
great efteem by the wife and good— glorious will be 
their reward in another world. 



CONTENTS; 



37 



DISCOURSE VL 

Toe Duty of Confide rat ion explained and en- 
forced. 

Mat. xiii. 9. 
Who hath tars to hear, Ui him hear, 

FART I. 

The Duty explained. 
By this mode of expreiTion our Lord meant to convey' 
the following ideas — that the difcouife he had been 
ce'i^ring was parabolical — that the truth veiled un- 
der the parable was molt, important— that their con- 
fidering it was necefTary to their profiting by it — 
and that, if they were not benefited, the fault would 
be in their will, not their under Handing — Ccnfider 
the duty men owe to the word — Enforce it. 
I^-Ccnfider the duty cur Lord ' inculcates— -to give *Her~- 
gy to what they fay, mini Iters mould remind them- 
fclves of their duty — if they would be heard, they 
mould — well underftand their fubject — be careful 
about their manner — look well to their aims and 
views— and depend upon the Holy Spirit for (ticcefs. 
— What the duty of the people— 
FIRST, Some, kind of preparation previous to hear- 
ing the word— efpecially on the day devoted to 
public worlhip— compofure— -foliloquy— prayer. 
SECOND, How to behave in the houfe of God — 
early attendance— decency—attention- to the 
rr each ei— -guard agalaft prejudice. 

THIRD, 



contents; 



r HIRD, Duty afterwards—Recolle&ion— to affiffi 
herein three expedients recommended. 

1. Avoid as much as porTible what may tend 
to difiipate the mind, and render it incapa- 
ble of recollection. 

2. Be not fond of hearing more than you can 
retain and digerh 

3. Make a point of retiring for the purpofe of 
recollection and prayer. 

PART II. 

The Duty enforced- 
ly Enforce the duty with Juitable motives* 
IJR3T, Decency — good manners require our paying 
attention to thofe who fpeak to us — efpec' UIv in a 
fet difcourfe — it is an affront therefore to good fenfe 
and decorum, not to lifted to thofe on whofeaiiiiruc- 
tion we profefs to attend. 
SECOND, Perfonal Gbligation^-Xnt anxiety of a 
friend for our good, a firong reafon why we mould 
regard him— SlbiftCrS cur friends— neither CfeuU- 
lous nor felf-interefted men — their anxieties and la- 
bours an argument to engage attention. 
THIRD, Preaching a divine irfiitu tion— zvtful men 
have taken advantage of this idea to impofe upon 
mankind— preaching proved to be of divine appoint- 
ment how we may know who are called to preach 

—argument thence to perfuade to consideration. 
FOURTH, Subjecl mofl worthy of attention— Truth 
and importance always give energy to a difcourfe — 
religion (hewn to be mod important— and true— the 
admitting the poffibility of thefe two pofitions a 

reafon 



CONTENTS. XVII 

real on for conllderation — the apoftles reafoniog on 
this matter. 

FIFTH, No ptofiting without cbnfidering — a cifcourfe 
not underitood, believed, or felt, can do us no good 
— it muft be heard and conlidered to thele ends — 
doctrine of divine influence an incitement to conn- 
deration. 

SIXTH, Many obflruFHons in the way of confedera- 
tion— -this our Lord (hews in the parable— fatan-- - 
— a depraved heart— the world— this formidable con- 
federacy an argument to excite .diligence on our part, 

SEVENTH, Command of God—to great a Being 
ought to be obeyed— -the voice of reafon, fcripture 
and minilters, all uniting to perluade us to confi- 
deration, the voice of God — wilful oppofition to him 
the greateft fin and deferving of greatelt punifhment. 

EIGHTH, Benefits ref tilting, from conjideration—ob- 
jeeiions anfwered — 44 Conilderation, if not impracli- 
" cable, yet painful, laborious bufinefs"— "I may be 
M convinced of what 1 don't care to believe"— 44 if 
" converted, mutt give up many enjoyments"— ad- 
vantages attending religion — in this life— the future- 
— Sum of the argument— Addrefs to hearers* 



DISCOURSE I. 



OF PARABLES IN GENERAL, AND THE LEADING 
IDEAS OF THIS IN PARTICULAR. 

Mat. xiii. 3,-9. 

And he fpahe many things unto them in parables, 
faying, Behold a fewer went forth to fow. And 
when he /owed, fame feeds fell by the way -fide y 
and the fowls came and devoured them up. Some 
fell upon flony places, where they had not much 
earth : and forthwith they fprung up, hecaufs 
they had no deepnefs of earth. And when the 
fun was up, they were fcorched, and becaufe they 
had not root, they withered away And fome 
fell among thorns, and the thorns fprung up and 
choked them. But other fell into good ground, 
and brought forth fruit, fome an hundred fold, 
fome Jixty fold, fome thirty fold. Who hath 
ears to hear, let him hear. 

OUR divine Mailer, the Lord Jefus Chrirt, pof- 
feffed the qualifications of a prophet, in their 
higheft perfection. No one ever taught like him : 
he fpake with authority, not as the fcribes. Seniibk, 
"however, that his initruftions could have no falutary 

effect. 



20 THE USE AND ABUSE 

effect, unlefs duly received, he earnestly exhorted the 
multitude who attended his ministry, to take heed how 
they heard. And to assist them in this great duty, he 
lays open, in the parable before us, the principles, 
motives, and conduct of the various forts of peifons 
who hear the gofpel. 

Our Saviour was constant and unwearied in the dii~ 
charge of the duties of his prophetic character. On 
the morning of the day this parable was delivered, he 
had repioved the fcribes and pharifees for their hypo- 
crify, warning them of the tremendous confequences 
it would draw after it. And having retired for a 
while to a houfe for fome refreshment, he went down 
to the fea of Galilee j and there entering into a fnip, 
fat on the fide of it, and from thence difcourfed td^a 
great multitude, gathered together on die more to 
hear him. They were plain country people, and fo, 
it is probable, well acquainted with hufbandry. He 
therefore talks to them in their own language, pre- 
fenting them with divine truth in a form eafy to be 
understood, and adapted to pleafe-. 

But here a difficulty occurs, which will require a 
little consideration. The difciples, when our Lord 
had finimed his difcourfe, alk him why he fpake to the 
people in parables. He replies *, quoting a paflage 
from Ifaiahf , "Becaufe feeing, they fee not - y and hear- 
" ing, they hear not,, neither, do they understand." 
From whence it mould feem, that our Lord himfelf 
considered the form of fpeech he had ufed as obfcure, 
and that he adopted it in difpleafure at their unrea- 
fonable lxupidity and unbelief. And how is this to 
be reconciled with our idea of the parable, as eafy to 
be understood, and adapted to pleafe ? I answer. This 

* Ver. 13, t Chap. vi. ^ 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. 2l 

mode of inftrnSion is certainly natural and proper. We 
often introduce nmilies into our difcourfe, to explain 
and illustrate what could not otherwife be fo clearly 
comprehended, But then, if a parabolical relation be 
given, without any intimation of the matter to which 
it is to be applied, it mull be uninterefting, and the 
intention of the fpeaker remain obfcure. New it is 
admitted, our Lord did not, in fo many words, declare 
what was the point he had in view. Yet, had his 
hearers been attentive, and made a pioper ufe of their 
reafon, they could not have been at a lofs to appre- 
hend in general his meaning. It was not probable, 
that one who claimed the character of a prophet, and 
had wrought fo many miracles before their eyes, 
fnould have nothing farther in view, than to amufe 
them with a tale of what often happens to hufbandmcn 
in lowing their ground. On the contrary, it was rea- 
fonable for them to conclude, from his difcourfe pre- 
vious to this, from the woes he hau ^jG^d Upon 
their leaders for their inattention and unbelief, and 
from what he added at the clofe of the parable, " Who 
u hath ears to hear, let him hear:" I fay, it was moll 
reafonable for them to conclude from hence, that he 
meant to hold up to their view moral and divine truth. 
Which being the cafe, hcv^natural for them to fup- 
pofe, that by the lower's fowing feed, was meant our 
Saviour's initrucling men in the great concerns of 
religion, and by the effect, of the feeds being fown, the 
various influence of his inftruclions upon their minds ! 
It is alio further to be obferved, that our Lord's put- 
ting the queftion to his difciples, " Know 7 ye not this 
" parable r" plainly intimates, that whatever obfeurity K 
there was in the parable, it was poffible for them to 
under ft and the general meaning of it ; and therefore, 

if 



f-JSSK THE USE AND ABUSE ' 

a£ it had not been for the depravity of thefe people 
hearts, it would have been pofTible for them aifo to- 
itnderiland it. But although a further explanation 
of it was neceffary, his forbearing to give it was but 
a juft expreffion of his difpleafure at their treatment 
of the plain truths he had delivered to them on the 
morning of that day : and fo they were naturally led 
to read their crime in their puniihment. Upon the 
whole, therefore, it mult, be acknowledged, the gene- 
ral intent of the parable being apprehended, that the 
method our Saviour took to lay open the characters of 
his hearers, was molt fit, natural, and eafy. 

Here it will be proper to enquire more particularly 
into the grounds- and reafons of this mode of inflruc- 
tion, that we may be enabled to account for our 
Saviour's frequent ufe of parables, that we maybe 
aitirled in the interpreting them, and that we may be 
guarded againtf: the wanton abufe of allegory, too 
coramoft among fcme people in uifcourfes on religious*- 
fubjecls. 

The word Parable, as appears from its derivation, 
iignifies a limilitude or comparifon* - It is fometimes 
applied to an apologue or fable, that is, a flory con- 
trived to teach fome moral truth : and fometimes it is 
put for a proverb, which is a parabolical reprefenta- 
tion comprifed in a (hort fentence. This mode of in- 
Itruclion is familiar and pleafant. Senfible objecls 
may very properly be considered as imag.es of fpiritual 
and invifible things j and by this ufe of them we are 
aftifted in our conceptions and reafonings about matters, 
of which we mould otherwife have fcarce any idea at 
all. By fubftituting one perfon in the room of another, 
or by relating a (lory appclite to our purpofe, we ai f e 
enabled to place certain characters and aclionsin.a 

fir iking. 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. T§ 

fhiking point of light, and to treat them with a freedom 
which in a plain direct addrefs would fcarcely be 
reconcileable with prudence and delicacy. The ad- 
vantages accruing from this Tnode of inftruclion, wife- 
ly managed, are fo confiderable that it has obtained 
by univerfal confent in all ages. It was ufed by the 
ancient prophets, the eaftern fages, and the Jewim 
doctors. And it is obvious that our Saviour had va- 
rious inducements to this practice. Befide the confi- 
de ration that it added beauty and vigour to his dif- 
courfes, and rendered them more agreeable to a people 
accuitomed to this manner of fpeaking, it enabled him 
to throw a veil over fome things which it was not fit 
to declare in exprefs terms. ?vlar.y events were to 
take place which, in the ordinary courfe of things, 
would have been obitmcled, had our Lord openly and 
plainly foretold them ; ftich as, his being put to death 
by the Jews, the deftruclion of their polity and wor- 
fhip, and the fpread of the gofpel among the Gentiles. 
And then as to the peculiar doctrines of Chriuianity, 
the full explanation of them being referved for wife 
purpofes to the preaching of the apoftles, this parabo- 
lical mode of initruclion was the fitted to convey that* 
degree of light concerning them, which was judged 
molt proper during the term of our Saviour's own per- 
fbnal miniftry. .Hence he tells his difciples, a little 
before his lart fufferings, " Thefe things haye I fpoken 
" unto you. in proverbs (or parables) : the time co- 
w meth when I mall no more fpeak uuto you in pro- 
" verbs, but I mall (hew you plainly of the Father 
From what has been faid then, we clearly fee why our 
Saviour fo generally taught the people in parables. 
Now. as the parables were intended for our inftruc* 

tion. 

* John xvi. 25. ~ „ 



24 "t'HE USE AND ABUSE 

tion, as well as theirs to whom they were fir ft deliver- 
ed, it is of importance that we, as well as they, rightly 
underfland them. To this end give me leave to bgr 
down two or three rules to affift us in the interpreta- 
tion of them. 

1. The flrft and principal one I (hall mention is, 
the carefully attending to the occanon of them. 

No one, for inflance, can be at a lofs to explain the 
parable of the prodigal fori, who confiders that our 
Lord had been difcourling with publicans and flnners, 
and that the proud and felf-righteous Pharifees had 
taken offence at his conduct. With this key we are 
let into the true fecret of this beautiful parable, and 
cannot miftake in our comment upon it. With inimi- 
table foftnefs and companion our Saviour encourages 
the hopes of the penitent finner, by defcribing the 
tender pity of a venerable parent towards an undutiful 
child. And with admirable addrefs he reproves the 
invidious temper of pharifaical profeffors, by repre- 
fenting the jealoufy and difguft of the elder brother 
at the kind reception the younger met with. — Under- 
Handing thus from the occafion of the parable what is 
the grand truth or duty meant to be inculcated, 

2. Our attention mould fce fteadily fixed to that 
object. 

If we fuffer ourfelves to be diverted from it by 
dwelling too minutely upon the circumflances of the 
parable, the end propofed by him who fpake it will 
be defeated, and the whole involved in obfeurity. For 
it is much the fame here as in confidering a fine paint- 
ing \ a comprehend ve view of the whole will have a 
happy and ftriking effect, but that effect will not be 
felt, if the eye is held to detached parts of the picture 
without regarding the relation they bear to the reft- 

Were 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. -2$ 

Were a man to fpend a whole hour on the circum- 
stances of tiie ring and the robe In the parable juft re- 
ferred to, or on the two mites in that of the good Sa- 
maritan, it is highly probable both he and his hearers, 
by the time they got to the clofe of the difcourfe, 
would lofe all idea of our Saviour's more immediate 
intent in both thofe inilruclive parables. And it 
mould be further obferved, that the dwelling thus te- 
dioufly upon the mere circumftances of a parable, 
fometimes proves a temptation to obtrude on the 
hearer fuch fanciful interpretations of them, as have 
no warrant for them either in reafon -or Scripture* 
Which leads me to add, 

3. That great caution mould be obferved in our 
reafoning from the parables to the peculiar doctrines 
of Chriftianity. 

The principal or leading idea of a parable is, I 
admit, a fufficient ground on which to eftablim a doc- 
trine j but this is not always the cafe with a detached 
part cf it. In difcourfes of this nature, circumftances 
muft be introduced to make up the ftory, and to give 
confiftency and harmony to it : but there is no reafon 
in fuppofmg that a myitery is couched under each of 
thefe circumftances. The parable of Dives and La- 
zarus clearly proves, in my opinion, the exigence of a 
feparate ftate, iince, if this be not admitted, I am at a 
lofs how to give a confident meaning to it, and under 
the neceiTity of fuppcfing that our Lord countenanced 
a popular notion which had no foundation in truth. 
But, on the contrary, were I, -upon the mere circum- 
Itance of Dives's expreffing a concern that his bre- 
thren came not into that place of torment, to eftablifh 
fuch a pofition as this, that there is benevolence 
among damned fpirlts, I mould reafon very improper- 
C Ij. 



1$ THE USE AND ABUSE 

ly. I aaeati not however by this to fay, that 
tention is to be paid to what may be called the teints 
or colouring of a parable. Lights and (hades have 
their effecl:, and our Lord might intend, by relating 
little incidents, yea even by the very turn of an ex- 
preffion, to convey fome rfeful lefifoii to the mind., 
But then, as we mould be on our guard that. we are 
not diverted from the grand objecl by thefe matters, 
fo we mould take heed how we raife upon them a fu- 
perflruclure which they are not able to fupport. Such 
imprudent treatment of the parables by inconfiderate 
people has contributed not a little to fcepticifm^and 
created doubts in fome minds, whether doclrines thus 
unfkilfully defended, have any other foundation than 
in mere imagination. 

And now, from what has been faid. we fee, in ge- 
neral, the importance, of carefully. guarding againft an 
intemperate ufe of figure and allegory, in difcourfes on 
moral and religious fubjecls. But this is a matter that 
requires a little further confideration. 

We have already admitted that -a figurative mode 
of fpeech is allowable, and fometimes abfolutely ne- 
ceffary. Our -ideas, mod of them, originate from 
fenfation. By comparing the various orders of mate- 
rial beings with one another, we corae to underftand 
tiieir diflingui filing properties : and by comparing the 
objects of faith with thofe of fenfe, if the analogy is 
properly obferved, we areafiifted in our reafoning about 
them. And every one is fenfible how much a dif- 
courfe is embellifhed and enlivened by figurative lan- 
guage. We mean not, therefore, to condemn the ufe 
of metaphors and fimilitudes, but only to correcl the 
abufe of them. And what occafion there is for an at- 
tempt 01 this kind none can be ignorant, who confider 

the 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. 2^ 

the manner in which public ^preaching is conducted m 
many popular aifemblies. 

It is lamentable to think what multitudes of wc-sk. 
people are impofed upon in this way. Their imagi- 
nation is amufed, and their pafiions excited, at the ex- 
pence of their underltanding and judgment, which are 
miferably trifled with, and top often grofsly perverted. 
Figures we ihail hear applied to what they bear no 
refemblance to, or at raoft but a very obfcure and im- 
perfeft one. Metaphors of the loweft kind, if not in- 
decent, we (hall hear poured out in great abundance 3 
a whole difcoiafrfe filled with them, and fometimes a fa- 
vourite one twilled and turned to any, or every pur- 
pole, without fenfe or reafon. The doctrine of types 
mall be treated with the greateft Freedom, as if no 
bounds were to be affixed to a wild imagination, 
and the preacher were at liberty to impofe his own 
conceits on all the circum fiances of the Jewim rituaL 
That (hall be made a type which is none, and where 
there is one, it {hall be ftretched beyond its true 
meaning. The very outlines of a iliadow mall be- 
come the foundation of fome important doctrine* 
Scripture hiftories (hall be converted into allegories, 
the common actions and intercourfes of the patriarchs 
and others affumr the air of rnyltery, and even the 
geography of the Old Teftament have a fpiritual 
meaning given it. And thus the Bible fhall be made 
to fay, in an infinite variety of forms, what no man o£ 
common fenfe can believe it ever meant to fay. 

And now we are upon the fubiecf. of public preach- 
ing, it may not be amifs to add, that this myftjeal 
treatment of Scripture is not the only evil we have to 
complrtin of. The pulpit is too often difgraced with 
tl kind of language, action, and manner of addrefs, bet- 
ter 



2% THE USE AND ABUSE 

ter fluted to the familiarity of the market or fire=.fide 3 
yea, in fome inftances, to the drollery of the ft age, 
than the gravity of a Chriftian affembly* Sermons 
ihall become vehicles, not only of trifling puerilities, 
quaint conceits, and phantaftic allufions, but of idle 
Tories, fome true and fome falfe. At every ftep the 
preacher advances, you mall have fome image held up 
to view, taken from common life, dreffed in an antic 
form, and adapted as it mould feem rather to difturb 
than to excite devotion. Or if this be not his aim, 
but on the contrary his object is to make fome truth 
or duty familiar to his hearers, yet the means defeat 
the end : for the fubftance is loft amidft the people's 
attention to the (hadow, and fo much time is taken up 
about the images of things, that little is left to inves- 
tigate the. real nature of the things themfelves. 

Now one cannot help wondering what mould in- 
duce men who have any pretenfions to fenfe or feri- 
cumefs, to-adept a mode of pre aching fo trifling, in- 
decent, and pernicious. Charity forbids our fuppo- 
fing that they mean to burlefque religion : if, howe- 
ver, they did, they could not take more effectual mea- 
fures to that end. But we will rather impute the evil- 
to lefs offenfive caufes, fuch as indolence, a fondnefs 
for popularity, or a wild conceit, that by thefe means 
they {hail be likely to allure people to the confidera- 
tion of divine things. 

That this is an eafy mode of preaching, and re- 
quires no great labour or ingenuity, is not to be doubt- 
ed. A man of a (lender capacity, with a little natu- 
ral elocution, and a good deal of courage, may eaiily 
enough defcant for a while upon this or that trite me- 
taphor, making its feveral qualities ft and for fome- 
thing he has no clear idea of, and knows not how to 

exprefs 



Ot f ALLEGORICAL INS TRU C T 1 ON \ 2$ 

exprefs in plain language ; efpeciaily if he has the 
talent of digreffing when occaiion reouires, and of 
mingling with his difcourfe a variety of tales, fome lu- 
dicrous, and others fericus. And thus pollened cf the 
art of preaching, pray why moul^i he throw away his 
time in laborious refearches into nature, the word of 
God, and his own heart? Why mould he fpend his 
days and nights in clofe thought, diligent reading, fe- 
vere enquiry, and a conitant fuccellion cf painful ex- 
ertions r Truly if this mode of preaching were agree- 
able either to common fenfe or Scripture^ he would 
be jultined in forbearing fuch labour, But as this is 
not the cafe, it would furely be mo:e for his own and 
the people's advantage, if he were lefs felicitous about 
his eafe, and applied hirnfelf with greater anxiety to 
his dirty. It is the plain language of the Bib!e 9 
" Give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doc- 
" trine *. Study to (hew thyfelf approved unto Gcd ? 
u a workman that needeth not to be afhamed, rightly 
" dividing the word of truth f," Labour to get at the 
grounds and reafons of things; to explore their na- 
ture, ufes and effects } to Hate clearly the difference 
between good and evil 3 and thus to lead men ftep by 
fiep, to the knowledge of God, Chrift, themfelves^ 
their intereit, duty, and final Hate. 

But it will be faid, " An allegorical declamatory 
" kind of preaching, is moil pleafing to the common 
M people : and what harm is there in a man's wifhing 
w to be popular r" It is indeed to be feared, too ma- 
ny hearers are more pleafed with founds than fenfe, 
with the fhadow than the fubftance, the falfe glare cf 
a bold image, than the linking energy of truth. They 
are more difpofed to take things for granted, on the 
C 3 bolci 
* 1 Tim. iv, 13. f % Tim. ii, 15, 



30 T#E USE AND ABUSE 

bold aiTertion of the preacher, than to enquire into 
the grounds upon which they ftand. They feel no 
wearinefs in hearing a loofe, unconnected, unmeaning 
harangue, but their fpirits are quickly jaded by an at- 
tention to clofe reafoning. In (hort, fo their fancy is 
pleated, and their paffions moved, they care not what 
becomes of their underflanding and judgment. This, 
I fay, is the character of too many hearers. But 
raufi we accommodate ourfelves to fuch a depraved 
tafte, in order to draw the multitude after us ? Is this 
manly ? Is this honeft ? Is this treating either them 
cr ourfelves as we ought ■< Should we not rather take 
pains to correct their tafte, and to convince them that* 
religion is not a matter of amufement, but of the moft>- 
ferious consideration ? 

But you will fay, " We mean to do them good, 
44 and what fome confider as mere arts of perfuafkm 
44 may yet, if w T ell timed, have a good effect. The 
" taking men in their own way, adopting their fami- 
u liar language, furprinng them now and then with 'a 
" bold figure, a fudden turn of thought, a fally of wit, 
" a pleafant tale, or a group of frightful images \ all 
" this may fucceed and catch their attention, excite 

their paiTions, and fo gain their good will." True, 
they may. But having got your point, what good 
have you done them ? If the bulinefs is to flop here, 
no time being left for the fober difcuflion of fome im- 
portant truth, and a ferious addrefs to the confcience, 
how is the great end of preaching anfwered ? Your 
audience is neither wifer nor better. And the great 
mifchief is, too many miiiake the pleafurable or pain- 
ful feelings, which are the mere mechanical effect of 
your thus- praclifing on their ears and their imagina- 
tion, for religious impreflioas. They have been amu- 

fed 



OF ALLEGORICAL I N S TRf CT I ON # 3T 

fed and delighted, or furprifed and fet a wondering, 
:md fo inftantly conclude they are converted. I am 
not objecting againft an eafy pleafant delivery, occa- 
fional fallies of imagination, or a temperate ufe of me- 
taphors y nor am I pleading for a dull, fcholalric, fy- 
flematical treatment of divine truth. Eut the former 
extreme is, I think, far more dangerous than the lat- 
ter, as we mall prefently (hew, 

" Well but," fay you, " Is not an allegorical mode 
M of preaching fcriptural ? Did not the prophets, and 
" our Lord Jefus Chriit himfelf, deal much in para- 
M bles ?" True, they did, Nor are we forbid the ufe 
of fimilitudes *, they are, on many occafions, highly 
proper and ufeful. And if you manage them to ad- 
vantage, and in the manner the infpired writers did ? 
you will find this mode of preaching to be of all others 
the molt difficult. A fenfible, judicious, profitable 
treatment of a parable or figure, will coft you a great 
deal of previous thought and ftudy. Nor do I know 
a better expedient to deter a wild allegorift from the 
extravagance we have been exclaiming againft, than 
to oblige him to fpend a few hours in adjufting, if he 
can, all the circumftances of a parable, fo as that it 
fhall agree with itfelf, and carry clear conviction on 
the minds of plain hearers. The parables which oc- 
cur in facred writ, and parti culary thofe of our Sa- 
viour, are moft clear, beautiful and vtrikhig. Their 
excellence lies in the happy union you here fee be- 
tween wifdom and fimplicity. Preach after this man- 
ner, and all wife and good men will vriih you God- 
fpeed. But I mould here again remind you, of what 
was obferved in the beginning of this difcourfe, that 
our Lord had particular reafons for fpeaking fo fre- 
quently in parables, and that after his afceniion, when 

the 



3 -a" THE USE AND: ABUSE- 

the veil was taken off" the peculiar doctrines of Chn~ 
ftianity, another mode of inftruction took place. The 
apoltles, wherever they came, held up the truth in its 
moil: plain and fimple form, reprefented- things as they 
were, entering, into their nature, qualities, connections 
and evidence, with no other aiTiftance from figure and 
allegory, than was abfolutely neceffary. If this fact 
were duly weighed, I think it would check the luxu- 
riance of fome good mens' imagination in this way, 
and bring them back to the ftandard of preaching in 
the New Teftament, 

With refpecl to thofe other liberties in preaching- 
we have complained of, you will be apt to fay, " Did 

not the prophets ' cry aloud and not fpare^ 5 and * lift 
u up their voice like a trumpet* ? ? Did they not *fmite 
u with their hands, and ftamp with- their feetf ?' and 
" ufe many geftures and words, adapted to exprefs 
u the violent emotion of their own minds, and to ex° 
u cite fimilar feelings in their hearers ? Did not our 

Saviour, in the la ft and great day of the fe aft, 1 ftand 
U and cry % an d was there not a remarkable vehe- 
u mence in the apoftle Paul's manner of preaching ? n 
All this is true. But it does by no means warrant 
what is indecent and unnatural, or indeed the expref- 
fing any earneftnefs at all, when nothing worth hear- 
ing is fpoken. But admitting that there was fome- 
thing allegorical in the tone, gefture, and actions of 
the ancient prophets, as well as in their difcourfes 
themfelves, and which might be juftified by the pecu- 
liarity of the occafion, and the extraordinary impulfe 
they were under, it does not follow, that their manner 
is to be imitated by us. And I am fure that there is 
not a lingle inftance to be produced, from the New 

Tellament 3 

* Ifa. Iviii. i. f Ezek. vi. ix. } John vii. 37. 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. 33 

Teitament, of any thing like thofe extravagancies we 
proteft againit. Our Lord " flood and cried, If any 
" man thirft, let him come unto me and drink," There 
was nothing in his language and manner but was natu- 
ral, and well agreed with the importance of his fub- 
jeet. And he was fo far from being loud and voci- 
ferous, that it was propheued of him, " He mall not 
" ft rive, nor cry, neither (hall any man hear his voice 
M in the ftreets And as to the apoftle Paul, let 

his hiitory be foberlv read, and you will be convinced 
that his zeal, which was very warm, never got the 
better of his reafon, fo as to tranfport him into any of 
thofe grofs indecencies we complain of. 

And now there remains only one thing more to be 
noticed, which we hear fometimes urged by weak peo- 
ple, as an excufe for the indifcreet liberties we wifli to 
correct j and that is, that " this eccentric mode of 
" preaching has been owned for the awakening and 
" converting finners." But before this argument can 
have any force, the fact itfelf mould be fully eftablifh- 
ed. Many have been fuppofed to be converted, whofe 
after conduct has furniihed fad proof to the contrary., 
Convictions have been miftaken for conversion, and a 
fit of warm enthufiafuc zeal, attended with a tempora- 
ry external reformation, has been deemed fufncient 
evidence of a renovation of heart. And thus a fup- 
pofed fact, or what is rather wifhed than proved to be 
a fact, is inftantly confidered as an inconteftible proof 
of the divine approbation of fuch preaching. But 
even admitting the fact, the inference by no means 
follows. Very unworthy characters have been inftru- 
ments of great good, and the unjuftifiable extrava- 
gancies of weak and inconiiderate men have been 

overruled 
# Mat. xii. ip. compared with Ifa. xlii, 3... 



34 Tf| E USE AND ABUSE 

overruled by divine Providence, in fome inftances 9 to 
very faiutary purpofes. There were thofe in the apof- 
tie's time who preached the gofpel of ftrife and envy ? 
and to add affliction to his bonds. And fo diiinterert- 
ed was that great and good man, that he tells us, lie 
neverthelefs rejoiced and would rejoice : thereby clear- 
ly intimating, that bad as thefe men Y motives were, - 
and improper as tKeir manner might be of preaching 
the gofpel, good might yet arife out of it. B'utfurely 
the aporlle did not mf an to commend either their prin- 
ciples or mode of proceeding The truth is, having 
made up our mind upon the quePuon what is right, or 
in ether words, what is agreeable to found fenfe and 
the word of God, it is our duty with all decency and 
fteadinefs to oppefe the contrary, be the poffible ccri- 
fequences thereof what they may. It is not the fay- 
ing that fooliih and extravagant preaching has been 
the occalion of real good to this or that man, that will 
juftify fuch preaching. A few poffible inftances of this 
fort, may indeed confole our minds under the evil we 
are lamenting, but they will not, if we are wife and 
good men, reconcile us to it. 

Having thus feen, how it is men fall into this very 
improper and unnatural mode of difcourfing- of the 
great things of God, it is time to proceed to the main 
bufinefs, which is to point out the pernicious tendency 
of it. Here let me firft fpeak of allegorical, and then 
of declamatory preaching. 

As to the former, permit me again to obferve that 
I do not mean to lay figures,. comparifons, and fimili^ 
tudes under an interdict : they have their ufe if ma- 
naged with difcretion and moderation. But a failure 
here is an occafion of many great evils.— An intern pe> 

rater. 

* Phil- p. i. ic~*iS 3 



-OF ALLEGORICAL. INSTRUCTION. 

4"a.te ufe o-f figures tends to fenfuaiize the mind and de- 
prave the tafte— -the mifapplication of them gives a 
falfe idea of the objects they are meant to reprefent— 
and the reafoning injudicioufly from them begets a 
kind of faith that is precarious and mefteclual. 

i. An intemperate ufe of figures tends to fenfuaiize 
the mind and deprave the tafte. 

We complain, and very juflly, that fenfible objects 
engrofs the attention of mankind, and have an undue 
influence on their appetites and paflions. They walk 
by fight not by faith. They look to the things which 
are feen and are temporal, and not to thofe which are 
unfeen and eternal. To the latter therefore, we vrjflj 
to direct, their attention. And how is that to be done ? 
Why, not according to thefe. preachers, by laying open 
their true nature, and representing them in plain lan- 
guage as they really are ; but by arraying them in the 
phantaftic drefs, and borrowed colouring of thofe very 
cbjecls, with which we complain men are too ccnver- 
fant. Inftead of developing myfleries, we multiply 
them. Inftead of commending ourfelves to every man's 
confcience by manifeflation of the truth, we call a 
tawdry veil over it. And inflead of turning their eyes 
away from vanity, we direct them to it. A whole 
fermon, for example, (hall be taken up in defcrihir.g a 
palace, a garden, or a city, with an intimation now and 
then, that heaven is more beautiful -and glorious than 
either of them. Or the whole time {hall be employed 
in relating the incidents of a journey, or a voyage, w ith 
a hint here and there that the character and condition 
of the Chriflian in his way to heaven are fhadowed 
forth by thefe emblem?. And thus the attention of 
the people being held, the greater part of the diicourfe, 
to obj eels of fenfe, they are more amufed than inflrucr- 
4 . ecL 



36 THE USE AND ABUSE 

ed, and diverted than improved. Surely, then, thg 
dealing thus largely in metaphors, tends rather to im« 
poveriih than enrich the mind, to fenfualize the heart 
rather than elevate it to heaven. And I alk, Is not 
this a great evil ?— The next evil we mentioned is, 

2. The mifapplication of figures, whereby falfe ideas 
are given the hearer of the things they are made to 
ftand for. 

It is eafy to conceive how men's notions of the 
other world, invilible fpirits, and the bleffed God him- 
felf, may in this way be perverted. A licentious ima- 
gination has given rife to tenets the mod abfurd and 
impious. To this the idolatry of the pagan world 
may be traced up as its proper faurce. " Not know- 
ing God, and glorifying him as God, but becoming 
vain in their imaginations, they changed the glory 
of the incorruptible God into an image made like to 
corruptible man, and fo were given up to vile affeclions 
and a reprobate mind And if men will' take un« 
warrantable liberties in difcourfing-of the nature and 
effence of God, if they will call in metaphors to their 
aid, in order to explain the manner of the divine fub- 
fiftence, and will talk of that great Being with the 
fame familiarity they do of their fellow-creatures \ are 
they not chargeable with growing vain in their imagi- 
nations, end taking us a ftep back again towards 
the abfurd notions and idolatrous practices of the pa- 
gans ? Though they may not violate the fecond com- 
mandment in the groffeft fenfe, by making graven ima- 
ges of the Deity, they are yet guilty of a degree of im- 
piety and profanenefs. To the fame fource, I mean 
that of a luxuriant fancy, may be referred, the grofs 
notions of the Mahometans refpefting a future flate. 

Their 

* Rom. i, 21, 23, 26, 38; 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION- 37 

Their prophet, by the aid of a bold eaftern imagina- 
tion, has accommodated his doctrine to the fenfual 
tafte of his votaries, and fo done infinite mifchief in the 
world. And do not they act as if they meant to con- 
vert men to the religion of the -falfe prophet, who can 
difcourfe of nothing in the Chriftian Scheme but under 
the veil of my fiery, though the gofpel has taken away 
that veil, and taught us with open face to behold as in 
a glafe the glory of the Lord ? Nor is it to be won- 
dered at, that men conceive erroneoufly of the opera- 
tions of the Spirit, communion with God, the tempta- 
tions of Satan, the joys of heaven, and the pains of 
hell j if thefe things are never difcourfed of as they 
really are, but under images alike grofs and fenfual 
with thofe we meet with in the Koran. Once more, 

3. The reafoning injudiciouily from types and 
figures, begets a kind of faith that is precarious and 
Ineffectual. 

We have clear and pofitive proofs of the facts the 
gofpel relates, and the important doctrines that are 
founded thereon. But if, inftead of examining thefe 
proofs to the bottom, and reafoning w r ith men unon 
them, we content ourfelves with mere analogical evi- 
dence, and reft the iilue of the queuion in debate upen 
fanciful and imaginary grounds, our faith will be con- 
tinually wavering, and produce no fubftantial and abi- 
ding fruits. An enthufiaft, ftruck with appearances, 
inftantly yields his affent to a proportion, without con- 
iidering at all the evidence. But as foon as his paf- 
f.ons cool, and the falfe glare upon his imagination 
fubfides, his faith dies away, and the fruit expected 
from it proves utterly abortive. To treat therefore 
divine truths after this manner, as if the direcr. and 
proper evidence were inefficient, is to Jo thefe truths 



§8 THE USE AND ABUSE 

great injuftice, to affront the under Handing of our hear- 
ers, and to injure them in their moft important inter- 
efts. The apoftles, wherever they came, foberly- rea- 
foned both with Jews and Gentiles concerning the 
Mefliah and his kingdom ; with the former out of the 
Old Teftament Scriptures, which they admitted to be 
the word of God j and with the latter from thofe 
principles of nature which they acknowledged to be 
divine. And in fuch manner ihould we difcourfe of 
the great truths of rellgion > firft laying down thofe 
which are admitted on all hands, then reafoning from 
them to others by neceffary confequence 5 and having 
eftablilhed the divine authority of the Scriptures, pro- 
ceed to prove, by clear, direct, and pofitive evidence, 
the do&rine therein contained. A faith thus genera- 
ted in the minds of men will not fail, with the concur- 
ring energy of the holy Spirit, to produce* the fruits 
of love and obedience. 

Thus have we pointed out fame of the evils which 
unthinking people are in danger of fuffering from alle- 
gorical preaching. But this is not all. Men of more 
refined underftandings, and a fceptical turn of mind, 
are induced hereby to reject religion, and treat it with 
contempt. Suppofe a man -of this call to go into a 
Chriftian affembly, and hear the plain hiftories of the 
©Id Teftament allegorized : as for initance, the fall- 
ing of the borrowed axe into Jordan, made to fignify 
the apoftafy of our firft parents, and Elilha's cauling 
it to fwim, interpreted of our miraculous recovery by 
Chrift 5 fuppofe him, I fay, to hear a whole difcourfe 
thus managed, what would be the eflfeft ? He would 
perhaps conclude that this fanciful account of the doc- 
trines meant to be inculcated, was the beft proof the 
preacher could -bring in fupport of them, and fo would 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. 3*9 

fee confirmed in his infidelity \ while fenfible people^ 
who do believe them, would be hurt to the laft degree 
by the officious zeal of this inconfiderate expounder 
of Scripture. 

So injurious to the caufe of truth is this fanciful 
mode of interpreting Scripture, that a late virulent 
oppofer of Chriftianity * infidioufly adopted it, in or- 
der to bring the gofpels of the four evangelifts into 
contempt. Under pretence of zeal for his Bible, he 
tells us with a grave countenance, that the accounts 
of our Saviour's miracles are to be taken not literally 
but myflically \ fo meaning to deprive us of one main 
evidence of the truth of Chriftianity, by bringing the 
reality of the miracles into queffion •, and at the fame 
time to raife a laugh upon Chriflians, as a company of 
credulous fools, ready to receive any interpretation of 
Scripture as genuine, which either ignorance or fancy 
may impofe upon it. Sure I am, the real friends o£ 
Jefus would not like to rank with men of this caft \ 
they, however, who treat Scripture in the manner we 
have been protecting againft, mult not be angry with 
us if we tell them, that they are gratifying, though 
undefignedly, the withes of thefe men, and in effect 
helping forward the caufe of infidelity. 

A word or two now, mail fuffice for the evils at- 
tending declamatory preaching, by which I mean all 
difcourfes, whether allegorical or not, that are defti- 
tute of fober reafoniag and addreffed merely to the 
paffions ; loofe effays, or harangues on popular fubje6ts r 
nlled with trite obfervations, and fet off with witty 
conceits and trilling ftories, delivered in a manner more 

lui cable 

* Mr Woolfton, in his " Moderator between an Infidel and 
" an Apoftate;" and his " Sis Piicourfes oa the Miracles of 
" Chrift." 



'4<> TOE USE AND ABUSE 

fbitable to the flage than the pulpit. We Have al- 
ready obferved, that fuch kind of preaching is by no 
means adapted to inftru£t and edify. But what 1 have 
here to add is, that ita tendency is extremely pernici- 
ous. It begets contempt, in thofe who are ill-afTefted 
to religion. It excites levity in thofe who are indiffe- 
rent about it. It difguixs fettfifele and ferious Chrifti- 
ans. And if any may be fuppofed to be awakened by 
it, fach perfons are in danger of miftaking impreffions, 
that are the efFeft of a mere mechanical influence upon 
their paflions, for the work of God upon their hearts. 
And mould not thefe evils be ferioufly confidered, by 
all who have unhappily fallen into this extravagant 
manner of preaching ? Thefe are not trifling matters. 
The glory of God, the honour of religion, the welfare 
of immortal fouls, and your own reputation, Sirs, both 
as men and as minifters, are concerned. But alas ! little 
is to be expecled from thefe expostulations with weak 
and conceited people, and lefs with thofe who are go- 
verned in the exercife of their miniftry, by bafe and 
unworthy motives. It is, however, to be hoped, that 
good men who may have been haflily precipitated by a 
lively imagination and a warm heart, into this mode of 
treating divine things, will on fober reneclion, acknow- 
ledge that they may poilibly be in an error, and that 
it is their duty to fpeak the word, as with all plainnefs, 
fo with, fobriety, wifdom, and reverence. 

Upon the whole, let us, my brethren, be perfuaded 
to conlider well, the infinite importance of the meffage 
with which we are entrufted to mankind, and how 
much the credit of religion and our real ufefulnefs de- 
pend upon our delivering it in a proper manner. Let 
us form our preaching, not to the depraved tafte- of 
•any fet of people whatever, but after the model our 

divine 



OF ALLEGORICAL INSTRUCTION. 4t 

divine Matter and his apoftles have fet us. Let us 
nrit, endeavour to inform mens understandings, and 
then to get at their conferences 5 always remembering, 
that if thefe objects are not gained, the more we prac- 
tife upon their pafnons, the greater real injury we do 
them. Let us, in the progrefs of our miniftry, look 
well to our aims and views ^ ever making it our grand 
end to glorify God, and fave the fouls of men. And 
while in matters of indifference, we become all things - 
to all men, let us not forget what cur Bible tells us ? 
that if we feek to pledfe men, we are not the fervants 
cf Cbrijl *. And thus purfuing the line of duty which 
God has laid down in his word, and depending on the 
gracious influence of the Holy Spirit for fuccefs, let 
us aiTure ourfelves, our labour mail not be in vain ia 
the Lord. 

PART IK 

We have confidered the hiftory of the parable before 
as, enquired into the grounds and reafons of this mode 
of inft ruction, mentioned the peculiar inducements our 
Saviour had to addrefs the people in this manner, and 
laid down forne rules to aflilt us in the interpretation of 
the parables. This has led me to obferve the impor- 
tance, of carefully guarding againft an intemperate ufe 
of metaphors, in dtfeourfes on moral and religious fub • 
jects } an evil which tco much prevails in our time> 
This fort of preaching, and all preaching of a mere de- 
clamatory kind, whether allegorical or not, we have de- 
fcribed ; and (hewn the falfe principles upon which it 
is adopted, and the very pernicious tendency of it, 
And we now return to the fubjecfc before us — the ex- 
D 3 planation 
* Gal. i. io» 



42 THE LEADING IDEAS 

planation and improvement of " The parable of the 
fewer." The general outlines of inftruction meant to 
be conveyed by it, appear upon the face of the para- 
ble : we are happy, however, in having our Saviour's 
own interpretation of it, as we are hereby fecured from 
the danger of mingling our own vain conceits with it, 
His expofition of it the evangelifl has given us *, 
which we fliali now recite in his own words. 

" Hear ye the parable of the fower. When any 
one heareth the word of the kingdom, and underftand- 
eth it not,, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth 
away that which was fow r n in his heart : this is he 
which received feed by the way-fide. But he that 
received the feed into fTony-places, the fame is he that 
heareth the word, and anon with joy receive th it : yet 
hath he not root in himfelf, but dureth for a while : 
for when tribulation or perfecution arifeth, becaufe of 
the word, by and by he is offended. He alfo that 
received feed among the thorns, is he that heareth the 
word, and the care of this world, and the deceitfulnefs 
of riches, choke the word, .and- he becometh unfruitful,. 
But he that received feed into the good ground, is he 
that heareth the word, and under ft andeth it, which al- 
fo beareth fruit, and bringeth forth fome an hundred 
fold, fome fixty, fome thirty." 

His audience, you fee, our Saviour ranks under four 
diftinct characters — the inattentive — the enthusias* 
■j&Git — the worldly-minded— and the. sincere \ each 
of which characters he "draws with admirable preci- 
fion and energy. And fince moft arlemblies conflfT of 
perfons .who anfwer to thefe defcriptions, we propofe 
to confider particularly what our Lord has here faid 
refpefling each of them. But in order to open the 

way 

* Yer. iS,— 23. 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. 43 

way to this our grand object, it will be neceffary to ex- 
plain the principal leading ideas in the parable. Thefe 
are — the Sower — the S-eed--the Grvund— and the Ef 
feci of CGfting the feed into it. ■ 

I. By the Sower is meant our Saviour himfelf, and 
all thofe whole office it is to inftrucl men in the truths- 
and duties of religion. 

The bufinefs_of the hufbandrnan h r of all others, 
moil important and neceffary, requires much Ikill and 
attention, is- painful and laborious, and yet not without 
pleafure and profit. A man of this profeffion ought 
to be well verfed in agriculture, to understand the dif- 
ference of foils, the various methods of cultivating the 
ground, the feed proper to be fown, the feafons for eve- 
ry kind of work, and in foort how to avail himfelf of 
all circumftances that arife for the improvement of his 
farm. He mould be patient of fatigue, inured to dis- 
appointment, and unwearied in his exertions. Every 
day will have its proper bufinefs. Now he will ma- 
nure his ground, then plough it ; now cad the feed in- 
to it, then harrow it j incefTantly watch and weed it \ 
and after many anxious cares, and, if a man of piety, 
many prayers to Heaven, he will earneftly expect the 
approaching harveft. The time come, with a joyful 
eye he will behold the ears fully ripe bending to the 
hands of the reapers, put in the fickle, collect the 
Iheaves, and bring home the precious grain to his gar- 
ner. 

Hence we may frame an idea of the character and 
duty of a Chriftian minifter. He ought to be well- 
Skilled in divine knowledge, to have a competent 
acquaintance with the world and the human heart, to 
perceive clearly wherein the true interelt of mankind 
coniiits, to have juft apprehenfioas of the way of fal- 

vation 3 



44 THE LEADING IDEAS 

vation, and to be rightly inftrucled in the various du- 
ties he has to inculcate. He ihould have an aptitude 
and ability to teach, and his bofom ihould burn with 
a flaming zeal for the glory of God, the honour of 
Chrift, and the welfare of immortal fouls. He ihould 3 
in fine, be endued with a humble, meek, patient, and 
per fevering fpirit. 

Thus qualified for his work, he muft " ftudy to ap- 
prove himfelf unto God, a workman that needeth not 
to be a(hamed, rightly dividing the word of truth 
He muft conlider well the character and condition cf 
thofe he inftru&s, adapt himfelf to their various capa- 
cities, feize every favourable opportunity of getting at 
their hearts, and call in to his aid every poflible argu- 
ment to enforce divine truth. He muft give to every 
one his portion in due feafon, milk to babes, and meat 
to ftrong men 5 and lead them on from one ft age of in- 
ft ruction to another, as they can bear it, initiating 
them in the firft principles of the doctrine of Chrift, 
and fo bringing them forward to perfection. Now it 
muft be his object, by founding the terrors of the di- 
vine law in their ears, to plough up the fallow-ground 
of men's hearts $ and then, by proclaiming the glad 
tidings of % the gofpel, to caft in the feeds of every 
Chriftian grace and virtue. He muft be iC inftant in 
feafon and out of feafon, reprove, rebuke, and exhort 
with all long-fuffering f \t* put out his whole ftrength, 
be fuperior to every difcouragement, and labour in- 
ceffantly in his duty. 

Pain and pleafure will attend all his exertions, and 
alternately affect his fpirits. The different characters 
he has to deal with, and different imprefiions the word 
makes at different times ; the various circumftances 

that 

* % Tim. ii. 15. f Chap^iv* 2. 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. 

chat atife to aid or cbitrucl his endeavours, and the 
various frames to which he is himfelf liable ' 7 thefe 
will all operate to create fometimes anxious fears, and 
at others, the molt pleanng expectations, Now we 
mall hear him w T ith great fadnefs of heart complaining, 
u Who hath believed my report, and to whom is the 
arm of the Lord revealed* r" and then, in the ani- 
mated language of the apoftle, " thanking God for 
that he hath caufed him to triumph in Chrift, and 
mads manifeft by his labours the favour of his know- 
ledge in every place f Now we fee him " go forth 
weeping, bearing precious feed and then " come 
again rejoicing, bringing his (heaves with him J."— 
Such are the duties and labours, fuch the anxieties and 
hopes, fuch the difappointments and fucceffes, of thofe 
who preach the gofpel, and who anfwer to the cha- 
racter of the fewer in our parable, who went forth to 
fow. 

Of thefe fowers fome have been more fkilful, labo- 
rious, and fuccefsiul than others. Among them the 
apoftle Paul holds a diftinguimed rank. By his lips 
the gofpel was publifhed through a great part of the 
known world, and by his hands churches were planted 
in moil of the cities and provinces of the Roman em- 
pire. And, thanks be to God ! perfons of this cha- 
racter have been raifed up in every age, by whofe 
means divine knowledge, with all the blefifed fruits of 
it, has been propagated among mankind. But the 
molt fkilful and painful of all fowers was our Lord Je- 
fus Chrift. He, the Prince of prophets, the moft ii- 
luftrious of all teachers,, fpake the word with a clear- 
nefs, affection, and authority, that furpaffed all who 

we at 

* Ha, i.. f 2 Cor. ii. 14. \ PfaJ, exxvi. 6, 



4& THE LEADING IDEA3 

went before him, or have ever followed him. This 
leads us-, 

II. To confider the Seed fown, which our Saviour 
explains of " the word of the kingdom," or, as Luke 
has it *, " the word of God." 

The hufbandman will be careful to fow his ground 
with good feed. He goeth forth, fays the Pfalmift, 
bearing precious feed — feed of fuch a nature as will 
produce, with the favour of Divine Providence, whole- 
fome fruit — fruit that will nourifh and ftrengthen thofe . 
who partake of it. In like manner, the word of the 
kingdom is precious feed — feed which will not fail, 
when fown in the heart, and cheriihed there by a di- 
vine influence, to produce wholefome and pleafant 
fruit. 

By " the word of the kingdom" is meant the gofpe! r 
or the glad tidings of falvation by Chrift. Our Savi- 
our came to erect " a kingdom," infinitely more hap- 
py, glorious, and durable, than any that had ever flou- 
rimed in our world. And whether we confider it in 
reference to perfonal religion — the church— or a fu- 
ture Jlate^ it exhibits to our view a mod ftriking dif- 
play of the majelty and benignity of God. — Let us 
apply it, 

l. To perfonal religion. 

In this fenfe it is ufed by our Saviour, when he ex- 
horts his difciples to " feek fir ft the kingdom of God, 
and his righteoufnefs f :" and it is this the apoftle 
means when, adopting the fame figure, ' he tells us^, 
" it is not meat and drink, but righteoufnefs and peace, 
and joy in the Holy Ghoft J." In the heart of eve- 
ry real Chriftian a kingdom Is eftablifhed. This king- 
dom fucceeds to one that had been torn to pieces by 

in t eft i ne 

* Chap. viii. it. f Mat. vi. 33. X Rom. si v. 17. 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED: 47 

it. teltine broils and animofities : for fucli is the ftate 
of the mind while enflaved by fin and fenfe. But now 
Chrifl is the fovereign of it : he fways his fceptre 
over all the powers of the foul. Enlightened by his 
doctrine, and fubdued by his grace, they all fubmit to 
his mild and equitable government, Peace, order, and 
good faith are reftored to this little common-wealth. 
It confides in him the Prince of peace, as its Redeem- 
er and Saviour, enjoys its liberties under his influence 
and protection, and cordially acquiefces in his autho- 
rity and laws. What a bleffed revolution is this in the 
bread of every convert to religion ! How many and 
great are the immunities to which fuch an one is en- 
titled ! A kingdom thus riling into exigence mall be- 
come more and more happy and glorious. And how- 
ever it may fometimes be fhook by the powers of dark- 
nefs, it mall prevail againit all oppofition, and by and 
by attain to the greater! height of fplendour and glo- 
ry in the world above. 

Now the feed fown in the hearts of men is the word 
of this kingdom, or that divine instruction which re- 
lates to the foundation, erection, principles, maxims, 
laws, immunities, government, pre fen t happinefs, and 
future glory of this kingdom : all which we have 
contained in oar Bibles. It is the doctrine of Chrifl: 
— a doctrine which comprehends in it the whole fyf- 
tc tl of divine truth, -whereby we are taught our guilt, 
depravity and mifery, the grounds on which we are 
pardoned, justified and faved, the nature and neceffity 
of faith and repentance, the honours and privileges to 
which we are entitled as Chriftians, our duty to God, 
ourfelves, and one another, the aids and influences of 
the Holy Spirit, and the glorious profpects of a fu- 
ture 



43 THE LEADING IDEAS 

ture happy immortality. — Again, let us apply the 
idea of a kingdom, 

2. To the Chrift ian difpenfatipn* or the whole -vifi- 
ble church. 

In this fenfe it it ufed by John the Baptift, " Re- 
pent ye ; for the kingdom of heaven," that is, the 
gofpel difpenfation, " is at hand *." All who pro- 
fefs the doclrine, and fubmit to the inftitutions of 
Chrift, compofe one body of which he is the head, one 
•kingdom of which he is the fovereign — - Ci a kingdom 
which," he hlmfelf tells us, -* is not of this world f ," 
eftabiithed not upon the fame principles, nor governed 
and defended after the fame manner, as the kingdoms 
of this-world. It is a fpiritual kingdom, erected upon 
the ruins of the fall, and gradually rifing to a kind of 
glory, far fur palling that of the greatefc empire on 
earth. Chrift, though mviuble to the human eye, 
reigns over it with uncontrculed authority, unerring 
W'ifdom, and infinite gentlenefs and iove. And his 
fubjeclsj w 7 ho render cheerful allegiance to him, he 
not only protects and faves, but enriches with the be ft 
and nobleft bleffings. — And by the word of the king- 
dom, in this idea of it, is intended all the laws w T hich 
Chrift has inftituted for the government of his church ; 
and all the inftrucTions he has given us refpecling its 
worfhip, ordinances, difcipline, protection, fuffe rings, 
increafe, and final glory. — Once more, the term king* 
dom is to be underftood alfo, 

3. Of heaven, and all the happinefs and glory to be 
enjoyed there. 

So it is ufed by our Saviour, in his fermon on the 
mount, where he allures thofe who are perfecuted for 
righteoufnefs fake, that " theirs is the kingdom of 

heaven ;" 
* Mat. iii. 2. t J°hn xviii. 36. 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. 49 

heaven*:" and in another place, "Fear not, little 
flock, for it is your Father's good pleafure to give you 
the kingdom f S 9 The fplendour of this kingdom ex- 
ceeds all defcription and imagination. " Eye hath 
not feen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the 
heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for 
them that love him J." In heaven the bleffed and 
only Potentate,' the King of kings, and Lord of lords, 
means ere long to colled together all his faithful fub- 
jecls, from the mod remote parts of his empire \ to 
make one grand exhibition to their aftonimed fight, of 
the riches of his glorious kingdom, and the honour of 
his excellent majefly ; to unveil his infinite excellen- 
cies to their view, after a manner the prefent ftate will 
not admit of .j and to entertain them with joys the 
moft refined, fatisfying, and eternal. — Well, and the 
gofpel is the word of this kingdom, as it has affured us 
upon the moft certain grounds of its reality, and given 
us the ampler! defcription of its glories, our prefent 
imperfect faculties are capable of receiving. " Life 
and immortality are brought to light by the. gofpel ||." 
And 44 God, of his abundant mercy, hath begotten us 
again unto a lively hope, by the refurreftion of Jefus 
Chrift from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, 
and undeflled, and that fadeth not away § — Thus 
we have the fum of that doctrine, which the minifters 
of Chrift are inftru&ed to publifh to the world, and 
which is the feed the fower went forth to fow. — Hence 
w r e proceed, 

III. To confider the ground 'into which the feed is 
caft, by which our Saviour intends the foul of man, 

E that 

* Matt. v. 10. f Luke xii. 32. } 1 Cor, ii. 9, 
JJ z Tim, i. io» §1 Pet. i. 3, 4. 



$0 THE LEADING IDEAS 

that is., the underftanding, judgment, memory, will, 
and affections. 

The ground, I mean the earth on which we tread, 
is now in a different ftate from what it was in the be- 
ginning, the curfe of God having been denounced up- 
on it *. In like manner, the foul of man, in confe- 
quence of the apoftafy of our nrft parents, is enerva- 
ted, polluted, and depraved. This is' true of every 
individual of the human race. It is a fact fufficiently 
attefted by experience, and plainly afferted in Scrip- 
ture. " God made man upright ; but they have 
fought out many inventions f." " By one man fin 
entered into the world, and death by fin : and lb death 
paffed upon all men, for that all have finned 
" Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean ? 
Not one IJ.' 1 " There is none righteous, no not one : 
they are all gone out of the way § " The Scrip- 
ture hath concluded all under fin ^[." Of the nature, 
extent, and dreadful effects of this miferable depravity, 
we mail have frequent occaiion to fpeak hereafter. It 
(hall fuffice at prefent to obferve, that as there is a 
variety in the foil of different countries, and as the 
ground in fome places is lefs favourable for cultivation 
than in others, fo it is in regard of the foul. There is 
a difference in the ftrength, vigour, and extent of men's 
natural faculties j nor can it be denied,, that the mo- 
ral powers of the foul are corrupted in fome, thrQUgh 
finful indulgences, to a greater degree than in others. 

As to mental abilities, who is not ft ruck with the 
prodigious difparity obfervable among mankind in this 
refpeft ? Here we fee one of a clear underflanding, a 
lively imagination, a found judgment, a retentive me- 
mory *y 

* Gen. iii. 17. + Eccl. vii. 29. - % Rom. v, 12. 
!| Job xiv. 4. § Rom. iii. 10. 12. Gal. iii. 22, 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. $1 

mory \ and there another, remarkably deficient in each 
of thefe excellences, if not wholly deftitute of them 
all. Thefe are gifts difhibuted among mankind in 
various portions. But none poflefs them in that per- 
fection they were enjoyed by our fir ft ancestors in 
their primeval ftate. On the contrary, they are re- 
duced, even in the moft fhining characters, to a very 
humiliating degree beneath the original itandard. So 
that it is true of all mankind, that they are at beft 
weak and fallible, efpecially in regard of the great 
concerns of religion. 

But it is with the moral powers of the foul, we are 
here chiefly concerned. There is in every man, pre- 
vious to his being renewed by the grace of God, a 
prevailing aversion to what is holy and good, and a 
ftrong propensity to what is finful and pernicious. 
" The carnal mind," as the apoftle tells us*, " is 
enmity againft God ) for it is not fubjeft to the law 
of God, neither indeed can be." But then this de- 
pravity, which is univerfal, is capable of being height- 
ened and increafed. This is too often the cafe. Re- 
peated acts of fin confirm vicious habits, and render 
them unconquerable *, and men, having a long while 
boldly refilled the dictates of natural confeience, and 
the perfuafions of religion, are at length given up to 
blindnefs of eyes and hardnefs of heart. In fuch cafes, 
they anfwer to that ftriking defcription of the apoftle f , 
where he fpeaks of them as " ground which, bearing 
thorns and briars, is rejected, and is nigh unto curling, 
whole end is to be burned." But there are fome who, 
though partakers with others of the general depravity, 
are yet of a nature more tender and flexible \ and, 
though they have the feeds of all fin in their hearts, 

yet 

* Rom. viii. 7. f Heb, vi. 8. 



Jf2 THE LEADING IDEAS 

yet their growth having been checked by early ir> 
ftruftions, and the reftraints of divine grace, the foil 
may be faid to be more favourable for cultivation than 
that juft defcribed. 

This view of the matter receives confirmation from 
the different account our Saviour gives of the feveral 
kinds of ground in which the good feed was fown. 
That which was ftony, by reafon of the thin mould 
caft over it, was more favourable for the reception of 
the feed, than the beaten path by the way-lide - y and 
that in the hedges than the ftony places. Yet neither 
of thefe foils, though fomewhat different from each 
other, could bring forth fruit to perfection without 
cultivation. Nor do we mean to fay, whatever diffe- 
rence there may be in the natural tempers of perfons, 
or however they may be aflifted and improved by edu- 
cation, and the ordinary reftraints of Providence, that 
they will any of them bring forth good fruit, without 
the effectual influence of renewing grace. The ground 
muft be firft made good, and then it wall be fruitful. 
So our Saviour fays *, " Either make the tree good, 
and his fruit good} or elfe make the tree corrupt, and 
his fruit corrupt \ for the tree is known by his fruit." 
But of this w r e (hall have occalion to fpeak more par- 
ticularly hereafter. — It remains that we now, 

IV. Confider the general Procefs of this bufinefs, 
as it is either exprefsly defcribed or plainly intimated 
in the parable. 

The ground, firft manured and made good, is laid 
open by the plough, the feed is caft into it, the earth 
is thrown over it, in the bofom of the earth it remains 
a w 7 hile, at length, mingling with it, it gradually ex- 
pands, (hoots up through the clods, rifes into the ftalk 

and 



* Mat. xii. 33. 



OF THE PAR. ABIE EXPLAINED. 53 

and then the ear, fo ripens, ana at the appointed time 
brincrs forth fruit. Such is the wonderful procefs of 
vegetation. Nor can we advert thus generally to 
theie particulars, without taking into yifew at once the 
exertions of the huibandman, the mutual operation of. 
the feed and the earth on each other, and the feafon- 
able influence of the fun and the rain, under the direc- 
tion and benediction of divine providence, 

So, in regard of the great buiinefs of religion, the 
hearts of men are firft difpofed to liften to the inftruo 
tions of God's word j thefe inft ructions are then, like 
the feed, received into the understanding, will, and af- 
fections ; and after a while, having had their due ope- 
ration there, bring forth, in various degrees, the accep- 
table fruits of love and obedience. And how natural, 
• a this cafe, as in the former, while we are confidering 
the rife and progreis of religion in the foul, to advert, 
agreeable to the figure in the parable, to the happy 
concurrence of a divine influence, with the great 
truths of the gofpel, difpenfed by mirufters, and with 
the reafonings of the mind and heart about them. To 
(hut out all idea here, of fuch influence, would be as 
abfurd, as to exclude the influence of the atmofphere 
and fun, from any concern in culture and vegetation, 
Let the hufbandman lay -what manure he will on bar- 
ren ground, it can produce no change in the tempera- 
ture of it, unlefs it thoroughly penetrates it, and kind- 
ly mingles with it ^ and this it cannot do^w 7 ithcut the 
alliftance of the falling dew T and rain, and the genial 
heat of the fun. In like manner, all attempts,~howe- 
ver proper in themfelves, to change the hearts of men ? . 
and to difpofe them to a cordial reception of divine 
truths, will be vain without the concurrence of al= 
anighty grace. Of Lydia it is faid, " the Lord open= 
E 3 ed 



54 T HE LEADING IDEAS 

ed her heart, that me attended unto the things which 
were fpoken of Paul *. M And " it is God," the apof- 
tie tells us, " that worketh in us, both to will and to 
do of his good pleafure f Nor can the feed, though 
cafl into the mofl favourable foil, expand, fhoot up, 
and ripen into fruit, without a concurrence of the 
fame influence, w T hich rendered cultivation in the firft 
initance effectual. Suppofe the fun no more to rife, 
and the dews no more to fall ' y there would be a total 
end to vegetation, the feed would perilh in the clods, 
and the earth ceafe to bring forth her fruits. And fo 
it would be in the religious world, were the influences 
of divine grace totally fufpended* 

And now, upon this view of the matter, how great 
the abfurdity, as well as impiety, of excluding the 
operations of the holy Spirit, from all concern in the 
renovation of the heart ! If we may reafon by analo* 
gy, from the works of nature, to thofe of grace, this 
reflection mule ftrike us in the moft forcible manner. 
It is true, our Saviour does not, in his explanation of 
the parable, fay any thing exprefsly of the influences 
of the Spirit. But the doctrine itfelf, which he elfe- 
where afferts in the clearer!: terms, is founded in the 
principle of the parable \ and fo interwoven with its 
very frame and contexture, that to deny the former, is 
in effecl: to deftroy the latter. "What man, in his fenfes, 
can fuppofe, that in the account out Lord here gives of 
fowing, he meant to affirm, that the fun and the wea* 
ther have no concern in the fuccefs of this bufmefs ? 
How abfurd then to imagine, that in a difcourfe, 
wherein he reprefents by this figure of hufbandry, the 
effect of his gofpel on the minds of his hearers, he had 
no regard at all to the exertion of a divine influence, 

iil 

* AftsxvLi^ t Philip, ii, 1 3. 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. 55 

in order to render it effectual ! Could he, who every 
where taught, that all nature was full of God, and 
that there is not a fpire of grafs that does not owe its 
vegetation to an almighty energy : could he, 1 fay, 
be indifferent to fo fublime and reafonable a do&rine, 
as that of the fovereign controul, and influence of the 
Deity on the hearts of men ? 

To object the difficulty of conceiving how this in- 
fluence is exerted to the existence of the faft itfelf, is 
to plunge ourfelves into a greater and ftill more inex- 
tricable difficulty - y I mean that of mutting out God 
both from the natural and moral world, and placing 
blind chance, and the will of a mere creature, on the 
throne of fupreme Omnipotence. But the fcriptures 
every where affert, in plain words, what our Saviour in 
this parable takes for granted. He himfelf tells us, 
that, " except a man is born of the ipirit, he cannot 
enter into the kingdom of heaven ; n and, at the fame 
time, replies to Nicodemus's objection, 44 How can 
thefe things be ?" by faying, " the wind blowet'h 
where it lifteth, and no man knows whence it comes 
and whither it goes, fo is every one that is born of the 
fpirit The evangelift John affirms, that " they 
who become the fons of God, and believe on the name 
of Chrift, are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the 
flefh, nor of the will of man, but of God f The 
apoftle Paul declares, ci we are God's workmanlhip 
created in Chrift Jefus unto good works J ; w and that 
" he hath faved us by the warning of regeneration, and 
renewing of the Holy Ghoft 5 which he died on us 
abundantly, through Jefus Chrift our Saviour ||." And 
the apoftle James allures us, that " God of his own 

will 

* John iii 5, 8. f Jobn i. 12, 13. 

% JEph.ii. 10. (I Tit. iii. 5,6. 



56 THE LEADING IDEAS 

will, begat us with the word of truth, that we fhould 
be a kind of firft-fruits of his creatures *J* But thefe 
are only a few among many other paffages of the fame 
import* 

Thus have we conildered the leading ideas in the 
parable of the fewer- — the Seed — the Ground— and the 
gradual Frocefs of this buiinefs, from the firit cultiva- 
tion of the foil, and the calling the feed into it, to the 
happy iffue of the whole, in the production of fruit at 
harveft. And thefe ideas we have applied to the ori- 
gin, progrefs, and' effect of religion in the heart and 
life of a real Chriftian. So our way is open to the 
conn" deration of the feveral characters our Saviour 
means to hold up to our view, which will be the fub- 
jecl: of the following difcourfes- In the mean time 
let us make a few reflections on what has been faid. 

1. How honourable, important, and laborious is the 
employment of minifters ! 

Our bufinefs, my brethren, is with the immortal 
fouls of men, to plough up the fallow ground of the 
heart, to call in the feed of truth, and all with a view 
to their bringing forth the fruits of holinefs. Can any 
fervice be more intereiling, or more painful and plea- 
fast than this ? What fervent zeal, what tender pity, 
what perfevering refolution ihould infpire our breafls ! 
Let us get all the knowledge we can in our profeflion, 
let us be expert in all the duties of it, let us have our 
hearts in it, and put out all our flrength in the labours 
of it. Let us be inftant in feafon and out of feafon ? 
watch for the fouls of men, as thofe that mull: give an 
account, and feize every favourable opportunity that, 
offers of promoting the great objects of God's glory 
and their falvation. We mult expect, like the huf- 

bandmai!, 

# James i. xS» 



OF THE PARABLE EXPLAINED. J 7 

bardman, to meet with our difapp ointments, and many 
will be our anxieties and forrows. But let us not be 
unduly caft down : though we fow in tears, we {hall 
ere long reap in joy. 

2. What a great blefling is the word of God ! 

'It is more precious far than the feed with which 
the hufbandman fows his ground. With this we are 
begotten by the will of God, that we may be a kind 
of flrrt fruits of his creatures. Divine knowledge, 
entering into our underftandings, and mingling with 
our experience, makes us wife unto falvation, cheers 
and enlivens our hearts, and difpofes us to every good 
word and work. O how attentively therefore mould 
we read the word of God ! how diligently mould we 
endeavour to underftand it ! how implicitly fubmit 
our judgment and confcience to its authority! how 
cordially embrace its facred truths ! and how regular- 
ly and conftantly govern our lives by its precepts ! 
" To n this good " word of God, brethren, we com- 
mend you," perfuaded that " it is able to build you 
up, and to give you an inheritance among all them 
that are fanclified 

3. What caufe have we for deep humiliation before 
God, when we reflect on the miferable depravity of 
human nature ! 

The earth has evident figns of the curfe of God up- 
on it. " Thorns and thirties it brings forth, and in 
forrow, and in the fweat of our face we eat of it, till 
we return unto the ground f ." In like manner, the 
foul of man is wretchedly difhonoured, enervated, 
and corrupted by fin. The foil that was originally 
rich, pure, and flourifhing, and brought forth fruit 
fpontaneoufly, has loft its beauty and verdure, is be- 
come 

* Acts xx. 35U | Gen. iii. 17, 18, ig, 



38 The leading ideas, &c. 

come cold and barren, and till it is manured and cul- 
tivated by divine grace, produces little elfe but bitter 
herbs and noxious plants. What have we then, in 
this our apoftate Hate, to boaft of ? " God created 
man in uprightnefs, but he hath fought out many in- 
ventions The gold is become dim, the fine gold 
is changed. Let us therefore humbly proilrate our- 
felves before God, and in the language of the patriarch 
Job fay, " I have heard of thee by the hearing of the 
ear, but now mine eye feeth thee ; wherefore I abhor 
myfelf, and repent in dun: and afhes f — In a word, 

4. And laftly, How great are our obligations to 
divine grace for the renewing influences of the Holy 
Spirit ! 

If the barren foil of our hearts has been cultivated, 
if the feed of divine truth has been caft into it, if the 
dews from the everlafting hills have copioufly defcend- 
ed on it, if the balmy influence of the bleffed Spirit 
has warmed it, caufed the living principles of grace 
implanted there to dilate, fpring up, and bring forth 
the fruits of holinefs *, if, I fay, God of his mercy has 
taken fuch meafures as thefe with us, how devoutly- 
mould we acknowledge his goodnefs ! Let not the 
regard which the fower pays to divine providence, re- 
proach our inattention and infenlibility to the more 
noble and falutary influences of divine grace. Thefe 
let us earneflly implore, and in thefe let us humbly 
confide. And ere long our (bouts of praife to the 
great Author of all grace, (hall far exceed thofe of 
the grateful hufbandman to the God of nature, when 
he brings home the precious grain to his garner. 



# Ecclef. vii. 29. 



t Job xlii. 5, e. 



DISCOURSE II. 



THE CHARACTER OF INATTENTIVE 
HEARERS CONSIDERED. 



Mat. xiii. 4. 

And when he /owed, Jome feeds fell by the way- 
fide, and the fowls of the air came and devour- 
ed them up. 

WE have explained at large the leading ideas in 
this parable, and proceed now to confider the 
feveral kinds of Hearers our Lord meant to defcribe. 
Their characters are drawn with admirable precifion, 
and will furnifh us with many ufeful lefTons of inftruc- 
tion. They may be all claffed under four heads— 
the Inattentive — the Enthusiastic — the Worldly- 
minded — the Sincere. It is upon the fir ft of thefe 
we are now to difcourfe. 

FIRST, The Inattentive, or thofe upon whofe 
minds the word has no falutary effect, at all. 

When the fower calls abroad his feed, fome fall on 
the path, lying through the field, or on that without 
the inclofure, the way-fide, or caufey : and fo the 
ground being common, uncultivated, and grown hard, 

by 



60 INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

by being frequently trod on, it is incapable of recei- 
ving the feed into it. Here therefore it lies, and is 
either bruifed and deftroyed by the feet of him who 
next pafTes that way - y or elfe the fowls of the air, birds 
of prey, quickly come and devour it* How natural 
die defcription ! 

Let us now hear our Saviour's expofition of this 
part of the parable. w When any one heareth the 
word of the kingdom, and underftandeth it not, then 
cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which 
was fown in his heart : This is he who received feed 
by the way-fide." — Here feveral things are to be ob- 
ferved } as, 

1. Thefe perfons hear the w r ord. They are not 
deaf, and fo utterly incapable of hearing. Nor are 
they determined at all events, that they w T ill not hear. 
This is the deplorable character of too many people. 
They fly from the word of God and the means of 
religion, as they would from the peftilence. They re- 
fuie him that fpeaketh, that is, will not fo much as 
give him a hearing. No confideration can prevail on 
them to enter the places where the gofpel is preached. 
And when God, in his providence, calls aloud to them, 
they reply, as did the Jews of whom the prophet Jere- 
miah fpeaks, 66 I will not hear, and this is their man- 
ner from their youth But the perfons here meant 
to be defcribed do hear. So far their conduct is com- 
mendable — But then, 

2. They are only occajional hearers of the word. 
They are, in regard of the affemblies where the gofpel 
is preached, what the way-fide is to the field, where 
the feed is fown, ground without the inclofure, or 
whereon the feed falls as it were accidentally or by 

chance* 

* Jer.xxii. 21* * 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 6l 

chance. They come now and then to the houfe or 
God, induced by motives of curiotity and amufement, 
or others more bafe and unworthy. But admitting 
that, in compliance with cuftom, education, or at belt 
the conftraints of corifcience, they attend more regu- 
larly 5 yet, 

3. They are not at all prepared for hearing the 
word. The ground is beaten ground, it has received 
no cultivation whatever. 66 Keep thy foot," fays the 
wife man, " when thou goelt to the houfe of God, 
and be more ready to hear, than to give the facri- 
fice of fools We ought to confider before hand, 
what we are about, to look well to our views and mo- 
tives, and to endeavour to compofe our minds to the 
folemnities of divine fervlce. But to thefe exerciles 
of the heart, the perfons we are here fpeaking of, are 
perfect ftrangers. They ruin into the prefence of Al- 
mighty God, as the horfe into the battle, without any 
awe of that great Being upon their fpirits, and without 
any concern to profit by what they hear. And hence 
it may be prefumed, 

4. That they hear m a heed/efs defultory manner. 
Their attention is not fixed, their thoughts are not 
collected, they regard not the drift of the difcourfe, 
obferve not the connection, nor comprehend the sea- 
fcning. And fo, 

5. They underftand it not, that is, they remain grofs- 
]y ignorant. Not that they are deftitute of the powers 
of perception and reafoning, in a ftate of abfolute idio- 
cy or infanity. No : They have common fenfe, and 
it may be, a great deal of natural fprightlinefs and fa- 
gacity. But not uung the faculties they are endowed 
with, not Hftening to what they hear, and not taking 

F pains 



62 INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

pains to apprehend and retain it , they only affix fome 
general idea to this or that palling fentence : and fo, 
are as uninformed, as if they did not hear at all.— But 
there are fome, in the clafs of hearers our Lord here 
defcribes, who, 

6. Do in a fenfe under (land the word : for the feed 
is faid, in the latter part of the verfe, to be fown in 
their hearts* Now, thefe perfons hear with more at- 
tention, but alas ! to no better purpofe than the 
others : for their attention being the fruit of mere cu- 
riofity, all the knowledge they acquire in religion, is 
merely fpeculative. And of this they have, perhaps, 
not a little, infomuch, that they think themfelves qua- 
lified to be teachers of others. But with all their fyf- 
tcmatical acquaintance with doctrines, all their know- 
ledge of technical terms, all their nice diftinclions, 
and all their profound metaphyseal reafonings \ they 
are miferably ignorant of what lies at the foundation 
of religion. They know not their own hearts, they 
perceive not the evil of fin, they apprehend not the 
danger to which they are expofed, they have no juft 
idea of their need of Chrift and his falvation, and of 
the beauty and excellence of true holinefs. They 
hold the truth in unrighteoufnefs, a great deal of er- 
ror is mixed with it, or if their notions are juft, yet 
there is one grand truth, of which they have no con- 
ception at all, and that is, the infinite importance of 
thefe things. And fo thefe perfons may be faid, not 
to underftand the w T ord of the kingdom. — But if they 
do, in a fenfe, underftand it, yet, 

7. It makes not any abiding imprejjion on the heart. 
The feed, as Luke exprefTes it, was trodden down, and 
that inftantly, by the next pafTenger. So divine in- 
flructions are treated by thefe perfons with contempt, 

or 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. ' 63. 

m at be ft with indifference. They are not laid up in 
the memory, and feriouily confidered and reflected 
upon, but are qui forgotten and loft. Thefe hear- 
ers of the word, " are like unto a man that beholdeth 
his natural face in a glafs, and gaeih his way, and 
ftraightway forgetteth what manner of man he was 
— And this leads us to what is principally obfervable 
in the text, and that is, 

8. And laftly, our Saviour's account of the manner 
in which thefe w.preffions ore effaced^ and all their fa- 
lutary e£ec"t defeated. " 1 he fowls of the air came 
and devoured the feed," which had thus fallen on the 
way-fide or beaten path : which our Lord explains of 
" the wicked one's coming and catching away that 
which was fown in the hearts" of them that heard, 
left, as Luke adds, " they lhould believe and be fa- 
ved."-— Here three things are to be confidered, 

I. Who this wicked one is, and why he is fo called : 

II. What is meant by his catching away the feed^ 
and how this is done : and, 

III. What is the malevolent end propofed— 'that 
they might not believe and be faved. 

I. Who is this wicked one, and why is he fo called ? 

The wicked one is fatan, as Mark expreffes it f j 
and the devil, as Luke has it J. To deny that fuch a 
fpirit can exift, merely becaufe our eyes do not be- 
hold him, is mod unreafonable, and in effect to deny 
the Being of God hiixtfeif. And to deny that he ac- 
tually does exift, is to deny the truth of the fcriptures. 
But I am not here debating with either atheifts or de- 
ifts. It is admitted that there is fuch an one as fatan 
or the devil. 

Now, for our account of him, we rauft be indebted 

to 

* Jarr.es i. 23, 24. { Chap.iv. 15. t Chap, viii, xa. 



64 INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

to the Bible. And what does that tell us concerning 
Sim ? It tells us, that he is- the chief and leader of that 
numerous" holt of angels, which "waged war again ft 
Heaven, and for their rebellion w T ere driven thence in- 
to the manfions of the damned, where they " are re- 
fer ved in everlafting chains under darknefs, unto the 
judgment of the great day *. He is endowed with 
powers, which far tranfeend thofe of mankind \ and 
thefe, ftimulated by unmfferaMe pride and defperate 
.nalevolence, are exerted with all poffible energy, to 
eppofe the counfels of God and the interefts of men. 
Hence he is called fat an ^ that is, the adverfary j and 
the devil, that is, the accufer. It was he that feduced 
our flrft parents from their allegiance to Heaven, and 
fo introduced fin and death into our w r orld : where, 
having thus fet up his flandard, he ftill exercifes his 
ufurped authority. He is " the prince of this 
world -J-," " the prince of the power of the air J." 
It was he that folicited the deftrudtion of the patri- 
arch Job || . It was he that " flood up againft Ifrael, 
and provoked David to number the people § It 
was he who, by becoming " a lying fpirit in the mouth 
of all his prophets," perfuaded Ahab to fight with 
the Syrian king to his ruin <[[. It was he that " flood 
at the right hand of Jofhua, the high prieft, to relift 
him **. It was he, in fine, that tempted our Saviour 
in the wildernefs, mod virulently oppofed his miniftry, 
and was the chief actor in the la ft fad cataftrophe of 
his fufTerings and death. 

Wicked men, ftyled in Scripture, the children of 
the devil, are his minifiers ; fometimes openly execu- 
, % ting 

* Judei. 6. f Johnxiv. 30. % Eph. ii. 2. 

|| Chap. i. dr-ult. chap. ii. 1-.-7. § 1 Chron. xxi. r. 

If 2 Chron. xviii. 20. 21. ** Zech, iii. i, z+ 



INATTENTIVE KEARFPS. 65 

ting his commands, and at others, like their mailer, 
who " transforms hirafeif into an angel of light," aflu- 
AHflg the character of " minifters of righteoufnefs *." 
So, " with all power, and figns, and lying wonders, 
he propagates through our world error, vice, and dif- 
cord, with a long train of the moll tremendous evils -f-. 
And fo, this once peaceful and pleafant fpot is become 
an aceldama. a field of blood. Horrid in on iter ! to thy 
influence all the calamities our eyes behold and our 
hearts lament, are to be traced back 5 and upon thy 
devoted head it is fit the wrath of incenfed juitice, and 
the curfe of injured innocence, mould fall.' 

Further, he not only carries on his defigns by in- 
ftruments employed to that end, but has himftlf accefs 
to the hearts of meo-j and though he cannot force 
them to act again ft their wi ll,, yet he knows how by a 
thoafand arts to catch their attention, play upon their 
imagination, inflame their defires, and roufe their paf- 
fions. He, " the god of this world, blinds the minds 
of them who believe not t u works in the children 
of difobedience || j" " puts it into the heart of Judas 
to betray" his Mailer § j " fills^the heart of Ananias 
to lie to the Holy Gholl^f^" lays " fnares" for fome, 
in order "to lead" them M captive and " walks 

about, like a roarin-g Hon, to devour" others ff } 
iC beguiles" the former " through his motility," ufmg 
a variety of " wiles" and " devices," in order " to- 
get advantage againft them J J jJJ and violently affaults. 
the latter, now by £< his mefle'ngers buffeting" them, 
and then difcharging " his fiery darts" at them |fj|* 
F3 In 
* 2 Cor. xi. 14, 15. f 2 Their, ii. 8, 9. t 2 Cor. iv. 4, 
|| Epb. ii. 2. § John xiii. 1, Acffcs v. 3. 

*^-2 Tim.ii. 26. ff 1 Pet. v. 8. 2 Cor. xi. 13, 14, 

Eph. vi. 11. 2 Cor. ii. ji, U|| 2 Cor. xii. 7. Eph, vu 16% 



66 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 



In fine, he, " the old ferpent, called the devil and fa- 
tan, deceiveth the whole world * \ and having fa 
done, " accufeth" them 66 before God day and 
night f." 

From this Ihort fcriptural account of fatan, it ap~ 
pears with what propriety he is here, and in many 
other paffages, levied emphatically " the wicked one.'* 
He is wicked himfelf in the higher! degree, for as he 
exceeds all others in fubtiliy and power, fo alfo in 
impiety and fin : a fpirit the mol! proud, falfe, envi- 
cus, turbulent, and malignant among all the various 
orders cf fallen fpirits. He too is the author of all 
wickednefs, the contriver and promoter of every fpe- 
cies of iniquity. Whence, the infinitely numerous 
evils that prevail in our world are called " the works 
cf the devil J." Such is the character of this firit 
apoixate archangel, the grand, avowed enemy of God 
and man. — And thus are we led to our fecond en- 
quiry, 

II. What is meant by his " catching away the 
feed," and how is this done ? 

% Immediately," as Maik has it ||, upon the feeds 
falling on the ground, " the fowls of the air came and 
devoured them up." So, as our Saviour interprets this 
circumftance, " the wicked one cometh, and catcheth 
a way the word of the kingdom that had been fown, n 
or had loofely fallen on the hearts of thofe juft now 
defcribed. 

" When the fons of God," as we read in the ftory 
of Job, " came to prefent themfelves before the Lord, 
fatan came alfo among them to prefent himfelf before 
the Lord \ ." In like manner, wherever the gofpel 

'..VS&$**% ■ '-' :r ' i t^^flftH ' 

* Rev. xii. 9. f Rev. xii. 10. | 1 John iii, 3, 
(| Chap, iv. 15. $ Job i. 6. ii. 1. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

is preached, lie watches his opportunity to prevent 
the due effect, of the word upon thcfe who hear it. 
To give a phyfical account of the manner in which he 
exerts his influence to that end, is not my bufinefs. It 
is enough to obferve, that if we have modes of com- 
municating our ideas to one another, and of exerci- 
ling the powers of perfuafion over the minds and paf- 
fions of men, there is no ahfurdity in fuppofing that 
fatan, though not cloathed in a human body, Gr vifi- 
ble to a natural eye, may have accefs to the heart, 
And the language of our Saviour is fo dire&ly and 
ftrongly to the point, that it is fcarce poflible to give 
it a meaning that can any way juftify a denial of the 
fact. If it were downright enthuHafm to fuppofe that 
fatan can have any intercourfe with the human mind, 
how is it imaginable that our Lord, who was a clear 
decinve reafoner upon every fubject, would exprefsly 
tell us, in the explanation of a parable, and without 
the leaf! caution to beware of mifinterpreting him, 
that " the wicked one cometh, and catcheth away the 
word from the heart ?" He fpoke to plain people, and 
did not mean to enfnare them with enigmatic or figu- 
rative language. Befides, the opinion that then pre- 
vailed of the influence of fatan in our world was fo 
general, that if there had been no ground for the facr 9 
fuch language as this in our text, and in thofe other 
palT. ge«i juft cited, where fatan is faid " to have put 
it into the heart of Judas to betray his mafter $ to 
have filled the heart of Ananias to lie to the Holy 
Ghoft," and " to work in the children of difobedi- 
ence j" fuch language, I fay, could not in that cafe 
be excufed of the charge of difmgenuity and a difpo- 
fition to temporize. 

No doubt the do&riae I am defending has been 

abufed 



63 INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

abufed by entrmfiafts, on the one hand, and impoftors^ 
on the other. But if men would attend to the calm 
di elates of reafon and Scripture, they would be in no 
danger from either of thefe quarters. For no more 
is meant by the influence which fatan is fuppofed in 
certain cafes to exert over the mind, than what is fimi- 
lar to the influence which wicked men are acknow- 
ledged to have over others ; to allure them by perfua- 
fions to fin, and to diiluade them by menaces from 
their duty. It cannot force them into fin, agalnft the 
confent of their will ; or, in other words,, fo operate 
on their minds as to deprive them of that freedom, 
which is neceflary to conftitute them accountable 
creatures. And in no cafe is it exerted but by the 
permifiion, and under the controul, of an infinitely fu- 
perior being* — To return * 

This mighty adverfary watches his opportunity to 
prevent the falutary efYecl: of the word upon thofe that 
hear it. And confiderin? what is the characr/er of the 

o 

fort of hearers we are here fpeaking of, it is not to be 
wondered at that he is permitted to catch away the 
feed fown in their hearts, or that he fucceeds in the 
attempt. For if their motives in attending upon dh 
vine fervice are bafe and unworthy, if they addrefs 
themfelves to the duties of religion without any pre- 
vious preparation, if they hear in a carelefs defultory 
manner, and if prejudices again ft the truth are cherifh- 
ed rather than oppofed, all which, as we have feen, 
is the cafe \ how righteous is it in God to permit fa- 
tan to ufe every poflible artifice to defeat the great 
and good ends to which religious inft ructions are di- 
rected ! Here then let us confider what thefe artifices 
are, at the fame time remembering that they take ef» 
feet, and can only do fo, by failing in with the falfe 

reafoningSy 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. C£f 

reafonings, and perverfe difpofitions of thofe on whom 
they are pradtifed. How does Satan " catch away 
the good feed from the heart r" That is our enquiry. 
I anfwer — by diverting men's attention from the word 
while they are hearing it, or while they feem to hear 
it — by exciting prejudices againjl it— and by prevent* 
ing their recolleciing it afterwards. 

I, Satan ufes his utmoft endeavours to divert men's 
attention from the vjord while they are hearing it. 

The utility and indeed neceiiity of attention, in 
order to our reaping advantage from the word, is evL 
dent at fir ft view. How is it polTibie that I mould 
underftand what another fays, and fo be benefited by 
it, if I do not lifien to him ? Nor will my hearing a 
word now and then, or catching a fentence as it paffes t 
do me any material good. We muft apply with feri- 
oufnefs, affection, and earneftnefs, if we will compre- 
hend the reafoning of the fpeaker, and feel the force 
of his perluafions. Hoc age, faid the Roman cryer to 
the people when the pried led them on to facrifice. 
So we mull be all attention, or the fervice will be un- 
acceptable to God, and unprofitable to ourfelves. 

Now a great variety of circumflances may and of- 
ten do concur, to divert the mind from what ought to 
be its only object on thefe occafions. And where there 
is no refolution nor even whh to refill: thefe tempta- 
tions, it is eafy to fee how they will operate to pre- 
vent all falutary effect from the word. The man I 
here mean to defcribe, not caring at all whether he is 
profited by what is faid, will not fail to be haunted 
with a thoufand vain and perhaps criminal thoughts 
and paffions. Now, the perfon, voice, attitude, and 
manner of the preacher, fhall wholly occupy his atten- 
tion j and if there be any thing lingular in either of 

them , 



7<-> INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

them, excite difguft or pleafantry. And then his eye 
lhall be caught by the audience, the place where they 
are ailembled, and particularly the countenance, drefs, 
and demeanour, of this or that perfon who fits near 
him. And fo an infinite multitude of idle ridiculous 
ideas mall croud in upon his mind, and like fo many de- 
mons take poffeflion of his depraved imagination. Or 
if his attention is not arretted by furrounding objects^ 
the bufineffes and amuferaents of life, with all their per- 
plexing anxieties and fafcinating defires, ffiall captivate 
his thoughts and create a long train of reveries, from 
which, even if he were difpofed, he would find it diffi- 
cult to extricate himfelf. And thus, while " the wif- 
dom of divine truth is before him that hath under- 
ftanding, the fool's eyes are in the ends of the earth 
There are few affemblies which do not furniih fome 
ftriking examples of fuch criminal inattention, here 
one quietly compofing himfelf to fleep, and there ano- 
ther indecently gazing on all around him. And I 
fear the hearts of the generality of hearers, could we 
enter into them, would exhibit the fad fcene we have 
been defcribing in its full force j a torrent of wild,, 
unconnected, trifling thoughts pouring in upon the 
mind, without even the feeble fence of one fober con- 
fideration or reflection to refill it. 

Thus does fatan catch away the feed from hearts 
indifpofed to receive it. He tempts, and they fall in 
with the temptation. He plays upon the imagination 
by furrounding objects or by impertinent ideas fug- 
gefted to the mind, and they are pleafed with what they 
little fufpect to be the artifice of this fubtile adverfa- 
ry. Inftead of watching each avenue of the foul, they 
throw open the door to every vile intruder, and revel 

in 

* Prov. xvii. 24. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS, J 1 

In the mod wanton and dihipated company, while 
•they are fuppofed to be fitting attentively at the feet 
of divine instruction. So this mighty enemy fets up 
his flandard in their bofoms, and bids defiance to the 
couhfels, reproofs, and expostulations of God^s word. 
So 4ie holds his miferable valTals fall in the chains of 
ignorance and unbelief. And fo they go away from 
the houfe of God as uninformed, unaffected, and un- 
improved as they came thither. 

How lamentable the cafe of thefe hearers ! But 
however ftupid they may remain for a while, con- 
fcience will by and by rcufe, and do its cfhce. The 
day is coming when this fad abufe of the means of re- 
ligion will be recollected with pungent grief. They 
will mourn at the laji, to ufe the words of Solomon, 
when their jlej?j and their body are confumed^ and they 
will fay, " How have I hated inftruction, and my 
heart defpifed reproof? And have not obeyed the 
voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to them that 
inltructed me ? I was airnoit in all evil, in the midit 
of the congregation and the affembly 

2. Satan ufes every art to excite and itiflame men's 
prejudices againjl the word they hear. 

Pride and pleafure are paifions that predominate in 
the human heart : whatever therefore oppofes them 
muft needs be irkfome, and cannot gain admiffion to 
the mind without many painful ftruggles. Now the 
gofpel ftands directly oppofed to thefe criminal paf- 
iions. It brings indeed glad tidings of great joy, and 
is accompanied with fufEcient evidence. But then it 
teaches the molt humiliating and felf-denying truths — 
that we are ail miferably ignorant, guilty, and deprav- 
ed ; that we are wholly indebted for our hope of ef- 

caping 

* Prov. v. 11,-14, 



*j-2 INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

caping tlie wrath to come and acquiring the happinefs 
of heaven, to the free grace of God through the me- 
diation of Chrift y that we rault humbly renounce all 
merit at the feet of divine mercy, and u fubmit our- 
felves to the righteoufnefs of God — -It teaches 
that, as it is moil reafonable, we mould exert every 
power in the purfuit of heavenly bleftmgs, fo " it is 
God that worketh in us to will and to do of his good 
pleafure f and that it is " by grace we are faved, 
through faith, and that not of ourfelves, it is the gift 
of God j%" — And it further teaches, that if we will be 
the difciples of Chrift, we mull: a deny ourfelves, and , 
take up our crofs and follow him jj muft prefer in- 
tellectual and fpiritual to carnal and fenfual pleafures, 
renounce the pomps and vanities of the world, and in 
the painful difcipline of the heart , and patient fubmif- 
fion to trouble, adhere to our divine Mafter and his 
intereft to the end. Such is the word of the kinp-- 

o 

dom, to which there is a deep-rooted avernon in the 
hearts of men j -an averfion fo confirmed in forae by 
the indulgence of criminal paflions, that it is almoll 
unconque rable* 

Now, in order to prevent a performs becoming a con ^ 
vert to religion, if he is not to be diiTaaded from fre- 
quenting public worihip, or if when there, his atten- % 
tion is not to be wholly diverted from the word by 
any of the artifices juft mentioned 3 what is to be 
done ? Why, an artful enemy, could he have accefsto 
the mind, would fuggeft all thofe ideas to it that are 
adapted to roufe that -averfion to the gofpel of which 
we have been fpeaking, and which, once roufed, would 
npt fall to indifpofe the mind to a calm and impartial 

attention 

* Rom. x. 3. | Philip, ii. 13. 

' $EpV:ii.S. JLukeix. 23. 



INATTENTIVE B£AR£&5* £3 

attention to tlie reafoningof the preacher. He would 
addrefs the paffions of pride and pleafure In every poi- 
iible way. He would make every imaginable circurn- 
fiance tend to his purpofe, He would give an unfa- 
vourable cad to the doctrine > perfon, abilities, views, 
voice, and attitude of the fpeaker £ and to the cha- 
racter, fenfe, manners, and rank of his audience, 
Thefe he would place in iuch a difguftiug light as to 
provoke contempt, if not abhorrence. He would 
whifper fu his ear fuch language as this : 6 What i 

* become a convert to a doctrine that affronts your 
4 reafon and good fenfe, degrades you to the rank o* 
4 brutes, yea beneath it, makes you a mere machine, 

* or at bell tells you, that you mud be a fool for 
4 Chritt's fake ! Will you be a dupe to this idle dc- 
4 claimer, and a fellow difcipie with thefe mad enthu- 

* fiafts ? Will you facrifice all your juft pretenlions to 
4 wit, fenfe, and ingenuity, and all your profpects of ho- 

* nour, wealth, and pleafure ? Will you be content to 
4 take your lot among a company of ill-natured, con- 

* ceited fools, or perhaps defigning knaves, who mo- 
4 nopolize the favour of Heaven to themielves, and 

* deal out their anathemas without mercy on all others ? 
i Will you be fo loft to all refined reafon, and manly 

* courage, as to become a fnivelfing penitent, a fenfe - 
4 lefs devotee, a bigotted religioniil r Will you tear 

* yourfelf from all your former gay, cheerful, and re- 
4 fpeclable connections, part with a prefent certainty, 

* for the chimeras of futurity, and fpend your remain- 

* ing days in contempt, glcormnefs, and forrow ? If fo, 
4 then liften to what thefe people fay, implicitly be- 
4 lieve their doctrine, and henceforth give yourfelf up 
c tamely to the guidance of blind impulfe and paiTion.' 
Such would be the language of this artful deceiver, 

G That 



£4 -INATTENTIVE KEAREU3. 

That fuch thoughts have arifen in the minds of 
multitudes while the gofpel has been foberly preach- 
ed, and they upon the point of paying fome attention 
to its reafonings and expostulations, can fcarce be 
doubted. And why we mould not admit that fatan 
may have an influence to fuggeft them, 1 know not. 
Of this, however, I am fure, that the language in our 
text looks flrongly that way — " the wicked one Co- 
meth and catcheth away that which was fown in the 
heart. " But permit me again to obferve, that thefe 
meafures of the great adverfary cannot fucceed, with- 
out the confent of the unhappy man on whom he 
pradHfes them. — Once more, 

3. Another artihce fotan ufes to counteract the in- 
fluence of God's word on men's hearts, is to prevent 
their recollefting it after they have heard it. 

More depends upon the duty of recollection and 
felf-application than men commonly apprehend. If 
indeed the end of preaching were only to roufe the 
paffions by a blind kind of impulfe, without the com- 
munication of any knowledge to the mind, or the fix- 
ing any folid conviction on the judgment and con- 
ference-} I do not fee what great good would refult 
from recollection. In that cafe, all my bufitiefs 
would be to recover thofe fenfations of terror and afto- 
nifhment, or of admiration ancl joy, which were crea- 
ted in my breail by the tone, genure, and eagernefs of 
the fpeaker» And what advantage it would be to me 
afterwards, any more than at the time of hearing, to 
poifefs thefe merely mechanical fenfations, I am at a 
lofs to fay. But if the end of preaching is, by inform- 
ing the understanding and convincing the judgment, 
to make the heart better ; then, upon the fame pi in- 
dole that it is men's duty to hear the word attentive- 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 75 

and to endeavour to the utmoft of their power to 
comprehend it, it is their duty afterwards to recollect 
the ideas they got, and the impreffions that were 
thereby made upon their affections, while they fat at 
the feet of inftruction. 

This would be, in a fenfe, hearing the word again, 
hearing it with double advantage, with abiding and 
fubitantial effect. The ideas thus revived, the. fenti- 
ments thus familiarized, the reafoning thus digefted 7 
the facred truths thus applied and brought home to 
the heart j would, with the blefling of God, produce 
not only fimilar feelings, but a further, increafing, ef- 
fectual, permanent influence upon the temper and life** 
And indeed it is hard to conceive how a man's under- 
{landing mould be informed, and his heart deeply im- 
preffed with what he has heard, and he not difpofed 
to recover the remembrance of what has paffeda 
Was there ever an inftance of any one who received 
real benefit from a ferrnon, which he never thought of 
afterwards r All due allowance is to be made for the 
irretentivenefs of fome memories, and the peculiar un~ 
favourablenefs of fome perfons' fituation and circum- 
fiances to the duty I am recommending. But it 
is a duty mod reafonable in itfelf, earneftly inculca- 
ted in Scripture, and if there were a hearty good will 
to it, would be found to have fewer real cbftruclions 
to it than is commonly pretended. 

Xcw we will fuppofe a perfon to have heard the 
word, to ha ye affixed fome ideas to it, and to have re- 
ceived fome trannent impreffions from it j in this cafe 
what is to be done in order to prevent its falutary ef- 
fect. > Satan is a more fubtile, artful enemy than is 
commonly apprehended. Perceiving this vaffal o£ 
his on the point of revolting from his fervice, in a fitu- 
ation 



7^ INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

atlon far more hazardous than that of another whom 
lie has influence enough to lull fall afleep under the 
loud calls of the gofpel ? or of one in whofe breaft he 
has addrefs enough to excite thofe malignant prejudi- 
ces mentioned under the former particular y percei- 
ving, I fay, this liege fubject in danger of being torn 
from his dominion, he muft have recourfe to other 
artifices than thofe already ufed. And what more 
natural, what more likely to fucceed, than thofe 
w r hereby the remembrance of what has been heard 
may be erafed, and the unhappy man thrown back in- 
to exactly the fame fituation he was before he entered 
the doors of fuch Chriftian affembly ? Here various 
expedients offer directly adapted to the purpofe. 
And if I might be allowed to ufe figurative language, 
to give, energy to this alarming fubjeft, I would bring 
forward fatan to view in the molt hideous form, iffuing 
his commands to a legion of demons, to feize on this 
apprehended apoftate from his kingdom, to rifle him 
of every ferious thought that occupie"dihis mind, and 
to bind him fait in the chains of thoughtleflhefs and 
diflipation. 

If there be truth in religion, it is certainly the moll: 
important thing in the whole world. To the man 
therefore, who begins to be perfuaded by what he has 
heard, not only of the poflibility, but the high proba- 
bility of its truth, it is the language of common fenfe 
as well as religion, * Go home, retire, call over the 
* matters that have been difcourfed of, weigh them in 
' the impartial balance of confideration, fearch the 
i Scriptures, enquire into your true character and ftate 
4 towards God, look forward to death and judgment, 
1 and addrefs your fervent cries to Heaven for mercy.' 
Surely there is no euthufiafra in this; It is the lan- 
guage 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. **J 

guage of calm and fober reafon. In matters of far 
lefs importance than thefe, admonitions to reflection 
and confideration, would be deemed prudent and falu- 
tary. But alas ! the unhappy man of whom we are 
(peaking, though ft ruck by the reafoning of the preach- 
er, as was Felix with the difcourfe of the apoltle Paul,, 
has not resolution to fall in with this advice, fo natu- 
ral, reasonable, and beneficial. He has beheld himfelt 
for a moment, in the mirror of truth, trembled at the 
deformity of hi? countenance, and faintly wiftied to 
take measures for the reiteration of the health of his 
foul : Eut O fad to think ! — he goes away, and for- 
gets what manner of man he is. The foft fyren per- 
fuaiions of a deceitful heart, and a thoufand furround- 
ing Snares, artfully laid by fatan for his ruin, prevail. 

He has fcarce left the aiTembly, where a folemn awe 
had feized his Spirit, but feme trifling obj eel catches 
his imagination, fets all his paffions afloat, banifnes 
every ferious Sentiment from his brealt, and precipi- 
tates him into his former ft ate of levity and inconfide- 
ration. Inftead of retiring Silently to his own manfion, 
and there calling himfelf and his family to account, 
upon the interesting concerns of religion > he is inftant- 
ly leen in a circle of vain, thoughtlefs, .giddy people, 
where the Subjects of converfation are totally foreign 
to thofe which juft now occupied. his attention. News, 
drefs, amufements, fchemes of pleafure or bufineSs, cr 
to fay the belt, trifling, remarks on the preacher, the 
audience, or fome Angularity in the behaviour of this 
or that perfon in the aiTembly 3 thefe are the topics 
of the evening, and thus is every ferious impreftion 
erafed, and all the benefit to be expected from public 
instruction entirely loft. Nor is it to be thought 
Strange, the day thus clofed without even the forms of 
G 3 jeligion^ 



^8 IN ATTENTIVE HEARERS* 

religion, that the bufinelfes and amufements of the fue~ 
ceeding week, mould bury in utter oblivion, the poor 
fnadowy remains of a ferious fentiment or an heartlefs 
wiih about God and another world. 

Thus have we fee by what meafures fatan catches 
away the good feed from the hearts of men — by divert- 
ing their attention from the word while hearing it— by 
exciting prejudices in their breajls againfl it — and by 
preventing their ferioujly recolleciing it afterwards. So 
we are led to confider, in the third place, the malevo- 
lent end propofed thereby. — that they might not be- 
Meve and be faved But this, with the improvement 
of the fubjecl, we fhall refer to the next opportunity* 

PART IL 

The character of inattentive hearers, and the fad ef- 
fect of their criminal indifference to the word, are the 
fubjects now under conlideration. a Some feeds fell 
by the way-fide, and the fowls came and devoured 
them up f This figurative account of thefe unhappy 
perfons, is thus expounded by our Lord himfelf J 9 
n When any one heareth the word of the kingdom 9 
and under ft andeth it not, then cometh the wicked one 5 
and catcheth away that which was fown in his heart i. 
This is he which received feed by the way-fide." We 
have explained the words, and made fome general 
obfervations upon them. So we have proceeded to 
the main thing, which is the confideration o'f the three 
following enquiries — Who the wicked one is, and why 
he is fo called ? — By what arts he endeavours to pre- 
vent the efficacy of God's word on the hearts of men ? 
—And the malevolent end he propofes thereby ? Sa* 

taa 4 

* Lake viii. i u f Matt, xiii, 4. |1 Yer. i& 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 7<> 

tan or the devil, is the wicked one here intended ) and 
-with what propriety he is fe ftyled, appears from the 
view we have taken of his character, hiftory and works, 
u He catchetli away the good feed of the word. 9 * This 
he does, we have fhewn, by diverting mens attention 
from it — exciting prejudices in their breajis againji it 
— and preventing their recolleBing it afterwards. We 
proceed now, 

III. To confider the malevolent end propofed there- 
by — " Left they mould believe and be faved * ; M or, in- 
other words, that they might ftill be held under the 
power of unbelief and fin, and fo be loft for ever, Hor- 
rid cruelty ! 

Here, in order the more deeply to imprefs our 
minds, with the importance of giving the moft ferious 
attention to the word, it will be proper to enquire 
what faith is — to defcribe the fahation promifed to 
them who believe — and to {hew you the connection be- 
tween the one and the other. 

FIRST, What is faith f I anfwer, it is a firm per- 
fuafion of the truth of the gofpel, accompanied with a 
deep fenfe of its importance, and a cordial acceptance 
of its gracious propofals j and fo producing the genuine 
fruits of love and obedience, 

The term believe is of plain and eafy import ; la 
well underftood, that, in common difcourfe, no one 
paufes a moment to enquire what we mean by it, 
Nor is it imaginable, that the facred writers ufe words ? 
in any other fenfe than is agreeable with their general 
acceptation - 7 for if they did, the Bible would be a 
book abfolutely unintelligible. It is however certain^ 
that, as the Scriptures affure us, that he who believes 
fliall be faved ; fo they fpeak of fome who believe, and 

yet 

* Luke viii. tz» 



SO INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

yet are not faved. From whence it follows, either 
that the term itfelf has two different acceptations, or 
rather, that the fakh of the one is accompanied with 
certain attributes or qualities different from that of the 
other \ fo that though they are both faid to believe^ 
their real characters are clearly and effentially diftiii- 
guifhable. Now, if we will fpend a few T moments in 
examining the definition of faith juft given, we fhall 
be enabled to draw the line between the mere nominal 
and the genuine Chriftian, the man who believes to no 
valuable purpofe, and him " who believes to the fa- 
ving of the foul 

The real Chriftian believes. But what does he be- 
lieve h I anfwer the pure unadulterated gofpel \ the 
fum and fubflance of which is this, that " God is in 
Chrift reconciling the world unto himfelf, not imput- 
ing their trefpaffes unto them f or, in other word? 3 
that of his free mercy, for the fake alone of what Chriil 
has done and fuffered, he pardons, jurtifies, and fav^s 
the believing penitent finner. This plain truth he 
clearly apprehends, though a firanger to a thoufar/d 
curious queftions that have been agitated about it. 

But upon what ground does he believe the gofpel ? 
It is replied, the telximony of God. The external 
evidence of Chriflianity, I mean that of miracle and 
prophecy, ftrikes him upon a general view of it as 
clear and convincing. But if he has neither ability 
nor leifure to enter fo fully into it as others may have, 
yet that defe£t is fupplied by the internal evidence 
of it, brought home to his own perception, reafoning, 
and experience. He fees it is a doctrine according to 
godlinefs, tending to make men holy and happy ? and 
he finds that it has this effect, in a degree at leaff, ca 

his 

* Heb. x. Z9- t * Cor « v - 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 8l 

hh own heart : and from thence he concludes that it 
is divine. And this I take to be the witnefs of which 
the apoitle John fpeaks ; " He that belie veth on the 
Son of God, hath the witnefs in himfelf 

It is natural further, as faith admits of degrees, to 
enquire what degree of affent he yields to the gofpel ? 
Not a faint, feeble, wavering affent ) but a firm af- 
fent, agreeable to the clearnefs^ ftrength, and energy 
of the evidence. Ke may indeed be afiaulted with, 
doubts, nor does he wiih to fupprefs them by unlaw- 
ful means, fuch as found reafon condemns. He is 
open to enquiry, ever ready to follow where truth 
fhall lead. But his doubts, having had in this cafe 
their full effect, ferve rather in the end to confirm 
than weaken his faith : jufi like a tree, whofe roots 
having taken fall hold on the ground, becomes firmer 
by being maken of a mighty wind. 

Aga^i, th^ gofpel which he thus believes, he be- 
lieves alfo to be moft important. It is not in his ap- 
prehenfion a trifling uninterefting matter. On the 
contrary, as it involves in it the mod ferious truths, 
w T hich affecl: his well-being both here and hereafter 5 
ib it roufes his attention, and calls all the powers of 
his foul into action. Like a man whofe houfe is on 
fire, and is at his wits end till he has found means to 
extinguifh it } or like one who has a large eftate de« 
pending, and ufes every effort to get his title to it 
confirmed ; fo he treats this gofpel which he is per« 
fuaded is divine. 

His belief too of the gofpel is accompanied with a 
cordial approbation of its gracious propofals. He 
readily falls in with that fcheme of falvation which 
divine wifdom has contrived, and almighty power has 

carried 

* 1 John v. 10. 



$2 INATTENTIVE HEARERJ. 

carried into effect. At the altar of propitiation he & 
difpofed tofacrifice both pride and pleafure, and at the 
feet of the adorable Saviour " to cafl down imagina- 
tions, and every high thing that exalteth itfelf againft 
the knowledge of God While fome, " ignorant 

of God's righteoufnefs, go about to eftabiifh their own 
righteoufnefs, he fubmits himfelf to the righteoufnefs 
of God f." And while others, under, a pretence of 
doing honour to the free grace of God, throw the 
reins on the neck of their vicious inclinations, it is his 
object to be faved as well from the dominion of fin as 
the guilt of it. To the inftru&ions of Jefus, the all- 
wife prophet of the church, he devoutly liftens } on his 
facrifice, as his great high prieft, he firmly relies \ and 
to his government, as his only rightful fovereign, he 
cheerfully yields obedience.— And from hence it may- 
be naturally concluded, that the general courfe of his 
life is holy, ufeful, and ornamental. 

In fine, upon this view of the matter we clearly fee 
with what propriety the Scriptures affirm, that " they 
who believe on the name of Chrirt, are born of God % ^ 
that " faith is the gift of God j| tf* that " it is of the 
operation of God J and that " it is given unto us in 
the behalf of Chrift to believe on him ^[." So that 
there appears good ground for the natural and ufual 
diflinction between a mere hijloriccl and a divine faith, 

And now if we reverfe what has been faid, we ftiall 
plainly fee the difference between the two characters 
of the real and the fpeculative Chriflian ^ and how it 
happens that the latter is faid in Scripture to believe^ 
though he believes not to the faving of his foul. 

If it be enquired, then, of the man of this character 

what 

* z Cor. x. 5. f Rom. x. 3. \ John i. 1 2, 13, 

I Ephef. ii. S. § Col. ii. 1 1. % Philip, L 



INATTENTIVE "HEARERS* 8 j 

vrhat it Is lie believes, it will perhaps be found that 
his idea of the gofpel is a very miftaken one, or how- 
ever that a great deal of error is mingled with the 
truth. 

Or if this be not the cafe, and his notions are in ge- 
neral agreeable to Scripture, yet there is a defecl: m 
the grounds of his faith. It is not the refult of im- 
partial enquiry, and a ferious regard to the authority 
of God j but of a concurrence of accidental circum- 
fiances. * The Chriftian religion is the religion of his 
' country ; he was born of Chriftian parents j his 
4 neighbours, friends, and relations are of this profei- 
4 fion j and many good and learned men have told him, 
4 he may depend upon it the gofpel is true.' I mean 
not by this to infinuate, that thefe confiderations may 
not properly create a prefumptive evidence in favour 
of Christianity, and that they ought not to ferve as in- 
ducements to further enquiry. But furely a faith 
that ilands on this foundation alone, is not a divine 
faith, nor that faith to which the promife of falvation 
is fo folemnly made in the New TerTament. 

Further, his aflent to what he calls the gofpel, 
though it may have in it all the obitinacy and tenaci- 
oufnefs of bigotry, is yet deflitute of that manly firm- 
nefs which is the refult of free examination, and full 
conviction. So that his creed, be it ever fo orthodox, 
a::d his zeal for it ever fo flaming, is after all rather 
his opinion or fentiment, than the matter of his fober 
and ferious belief. 

And then, in regard of that deep feme of the im- 
portance of divine truth which always accompanies a 
divine faith, he is a perfect. Granger to it, His cha- 
racter is the reverfe of that of the Theffalonians, " to 
whom the gofpel came, not in word only, but in power 

and 



"84 INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

and in the Holy Ghoft It makes little other irr^ 
predion on his heart, than that a man receives from an 
idle tale he hears, and almoil inftaiitly forgets, unlefs, 
indeed, the eagerneis and pride of party-zeal happens-, 
as was juft obferved, to create in his breaft a warm and 
obftinate attachment to his profeflion. 

To which it muft be added, that however, through 
various indirecl caufes or motives, he is induced to af- 
fent to the gofpel, he does not heartily fall in with its 
gracious propofals. He neither relies entirely on 
Chrift as his Saviour, renouncing all merit of his own, 
nor yet cordially fubmits to his authority, approving 
of all his commands as moft holy, juft, and good.— 
And from hence it is to be concluded, that his exter- 
nal conduct, in regard of humility, meeknefs, tempe- 
rance, benevolence, . and the other Christian graces, 
hath little in it to diftinguifti him from the reft of man- 
kind. 

Thus have we contrafled the two characters of the 
real, and the merely nominal Chriftian j the man who 
believes to the faving of the foul, and him who, though 
he may be laid to believe, yet believes not to any fa- 
lutary or valuable purpofe. And hence, I think, we 
may collect a juft idea of the nature and properties 
of faving faith. 

And now, Sirs, let us examine ourfelves upon this 
important queftion. We have heard the gofpel. 
Have we believed it ? Have we received it in the 
love of it ? and are our hearts and lives influenced and 
governed by it ? We know not what true faith is, if 
the great concerns of religion do not ftrike us as infi- 
nitely more interefting and important than the molt 
weighty affairs of the prefent life \ if we do not feel 

and 

* 1 ThcrT. i. 5. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 85 

2rA acknowledge our guilt, depravity, and weaknefs - ? 
if we do not moil: cheerfully entruft our everlafh'ng 
concern to the hands of Jefus Chrifc, as our only Sa- 
viour and friend ; and if it is not our ardent defire to 
conform to his will, and to copy after his example.. 
And how deplorable will our condition be, mould we 
at laft be found in a ftate of unbelief and fin ! But I 
hope better things of you, Sirs, and things that ac- 
company falvation, though I thus fpeak. There are 
many, I truit, among us who do believe in the fenfe 
of the New Teftament. Give me leave, my friends, 
to congratulate you on your happinefs ) while at the 
fame time I tenderly lympathife with thofe who are 
weak in faith ; but who yet, amidit all their doubts 
and fears, join iflue with him in the gofpel, who 
u cried out, and faid with tears, Lord, I believe, help 
thou my unbelief*," — Let us now from this account 
of faith go on, 

SECONDLY, To fpeak of the falvation promifed 
to them that believe. 

Here a fcene the mofl delightful and tranfporting 
opens to our view ; a fcene, the contemplation of 
which in the prefent life fills the Chrifiian with ad- 
miration and wonder, but will overwhelm him with 
ecftafy and joy in the world to come. But we can 
only glance at it in this difcourfe. General, howe- 
ver, and imperfect as our account of it mult be, it will 
ferve to (hew the jndifpenfable necefiity of faith, and 
of confequence the importance of giving earnefl heed 
to the things we hear, left at any time we fhould let 
them flip. 

Now this falvation, whether we confider it in refe- 
rence to the evils we efcape, or the oppofite good to 

H which 
* Mark :x. 24. 



$6 "INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

which we ■ become entitled, is moil glorious indeed. 
It infinitely furpalTes every thing we read of in hifto- 
ry. What was the deliverance of the Ifraelites out 
of Egypt, their protection and fupport through the 
wildernefs, and their conquer! of Canaan, with the 
freedom, profperity, and happinefs they enjoyed there $ 
what, I fay ? were thefe events, however fplendid and 
miraculous, but imperfect madows, faint preludes, of 
that great falvation wrought out for us by Jefus, the 
Son of God ? It is a fa!vation from mora/, natural^ 
and penal evil, in their uttnoft extent $ and that fol- 
lowed with the enjoyment of poiitive bleffedr.efs in its 
High eft pe r feci ion <, 

I. It is a falvation from moral evil. 

The foul of man is the workmanfhip of God, and 
In its conftruciion the ikill and power of the great Ar- 
chitect is wonderfully difplayed. But, alas ! this 
temple of the living God, once honoured w T ith his 
prefence, is now laid in ruins. Sin, with a long train 
of miferies, has entered the heart, and taken poffeTion 
of it. It has darkened the understanding, perverted 
the judgment, enflaved the will, and polluted the af- 
fections. It has dethroned reafon, brought a load of 
guilt upon the confcience, created a thoufand painful 
anxieties and fears in the breaft, and fpread univerfal 
anarchy through the foul. 

Now from all thefe evils we are faved by our Lord 
Jefus Chrirt. He procures for us the free pardon of 
our fins, reinftates us upon equitable grounds, in the 
favour of our offended Sovereign, and fends down his 
good Spirit into our hearts, to renew our nature, and 
make us meet for heaven. Kis doctrine illuminates 
the benighted mind, re (lores peace to the troubled 
confcience, gives a new bent to the will, and directs 

the 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS^ §7" 

the paffions to their proper objecls. What a bleffed 
change is this ! But the falvation thus begun, arrives 
not to perfection in the prefent life. Light and dark- 
nefs, faith and unbelief, hope and fear, joy and iorrowy 
are here blended together. And hence the errors, 
follies, and fins, which the beft-of men are chargeable 
with, and which they fo pungently lament at the feet 
of divine mercy. 

Death, however, the friend not the enemy of the be^ 
liever, mall fet the captive foul at liberty, and reftcre 
the immortal fpirit to its primitive rectitude and puri- 
ty. At that happy moment, the Chriilian mall be 
freed from all remains of ignorance, imperfection, and 
lin. No evil thought, no vain imagination, no irregu- 
lar defire, fhall ever any more afRicl: his heart, or dif- 
turb his devotion. His intellectual faculties (hall be- 
come capable of the nobleft exertions, and his affec- 
tions be unalterably fixed to the fupreme Good. The 
ima^e of the blefTed God fhall be fully delineated on 
his foul, and in the contemplation and fruition of that 
great Being, he (hall be employed to all eternity* 
Thus the falvation begun here in fadnefs and forrow % 
mall be finally completed in everlafting happinefs and 
glory.— Again, 

2. It is a falvation from natural evil. 

Many and great are the miferies of an outward kind, 
to which human nature is liable in the prefent life. 
This is a fact not to be dl%ied \ proofs arife from eve- 
ry quarter. If we look into the hiitories of former 
times, we fhall find the greater part of them employed 
in relating the calamities which have befallen nations 
and public bodies of men j the ravages of war, and the 
devaluations occafioned by fire, tempeft, earthquake^ 
pdtiience, and famine. If we go abroad into the 

world, 



88 INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 

"world, among the various orders of mankind, our at- 
tention will every now and then be arretted, and our 
fympathetic feelings excited by feenes of diftrefs, tocr 
painful to be particularly defcribed — families finking 
into all the wretchednefs of poverty — parents follow- 
ing their only children to the grave — widows pouring 
their unavailing tears over their helplefs offspring— 
here a friend deprived of his reafon and his liberty, 
and there another laiiguifhing on a bed of llcknefs and 
death. No wonder thefe, and many other calamities 
we are the witneffes of, eaft a gloom over our counte- 
nances, and imbitter our pleafanteft enjoyments. And 
then, if we confider our own frame, the materials of 
which thefe tabernacles are compofed, the difaftrous 
accidents w r e are fubjecl: to, thofe harbingers of death, 
licknefs and pain, which are continually advancing to- 
wards us, and death itfelf, with the many diitrefling 
circumftances that often accompany it } w T hen, I fay, 
we conlider thefe things, we can hardly avoid crying 
out, in the language of the afflicted patriarch, " Man 
that is born of a woman, is of few days and full of 
trouble 

Now from all thefe miferies, the fad effects of fin, 
the Lord jefus Chrift came into the world to fave us. 
Not that eood men are exemnted from the common 
afflictions of life. Poverty, ficknefs, and death, they 
are liable to, as well as others. But none of thefe 
calamities befall them in the manner they do the wick- 
ed. From curfes they are converted into bleffings, 
and for Chrirt's fake they become falutary chaftife- 
ments, initead of vindictive judgments. If their hea- 
venly Father corrects them, it is, that they may be 
partakers of his holinefs j nor does he fail to provide 

them 

* Job xiv. i*. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 8p ] 

them with all needful fupports under their affiiftions. 
And they are allured, that however death, the greateft 
of all natural evils, is not to be avoided, jet it lhall do- 
them no harm. Nor are we without many glorious 
inftances of thofe, w 7 ho, through the faith of the gof~ 
pel, have triumphed over the king of terrors, while 
executing his laft commiiTion upon them. With the 
apoftle, in the moft heroic Itrains, they have thus chal- 
lenged the la ft enemy, 44 O death, where is thy fting ? 
O grave, where is thy victory I The iting of death is- 
fin, and the ftrength of fin is the law. But thanks be 
to God, who giveth us the viftpry, through our Lord 
jefus Chrift *." 

But let us extend our views to the heavenly world, 
where the promife of falvaticn, as it relates to natural 
evils, (hall receive tfs full accompliihrnent. When 
the Ifiaelites entered the good land, they ceafed frora 
their labours, and enjoyed all that tranquillity and 
happinefs they had fo long expecled. In like manner, 
" there remaineth alfo a reft to the people of Godf." 
When the journey of life is- ended, there will be an end 
to all the pains, fatigues, and dangers of it. We lhall 
no more endure any of thofe miferies we have been de- 
fcribing, or be the fad fpedtators of the forrows and 
fufFe rings of others. In that happy world, there is 
not one aching heart, not one weeping ey-e, not one 
complaining tongue. As the Hones that compofecj 
the temple at Jerufalem, were hewn and prepared be- 
fore they were brought thither y that the noife of a 
hammer might not be heard throughout the building : 
fo, the painful exercifes of the prefent life, whereby 
good men are made meet for heaven, having had their 
full effect, will for ever ceafe, and no found will be 
H 3 heard 
* i Cor, xv. 55,^6, 57. f Heb. iv.p 



90 INATTENTIVE KEAREP.S. 

heard there, but the voice of joy and gladnefs. And 
on the morning of the refurrecTion-, the body, roufed 
from the {lumbers of the grave, and faftiioned like un- 
to the glorious body of Chrift, (hall be reunited to the 
immortal fpirit } and in that happy union enjoy unin- 
terrupted health and vigour to all eternity. — We have 
now only to add, in order to complete our account of 
this falvation, that it is, 

3. A deliverance alfo from penal evil. 

Indeed, the evils juft described, may very properly 
be denominated penal, as they are the effects of fin,, 
and expreflions of the juft difpleafure of Heaven againft 
them. But what I have here in view, is the punifh- 
ment to be inflicted on the wicked in the world ta 
come, and the joys prepared for the righteous, among 
the bleffed above. It is but a general account we can 
now give of thefe two ftates : a tranfient glance, how- 
ever, at the one and the other, will fuffice to con- 
vince us, that the falvation promifed to them that be- 
lieve is infinitely great and glorious. 

The Scriptures, in order to awaken the attention of 
mankind to their future and everlafting interefts, have 
given us the moft alarming defcription of the punifh-* 
m$zit prepared for the impenitent and ungodly. They 
aSfure us, that " the anger of the Lord, and his jea- 
losy, ftiall fmoak againft them * fl* that M he will 

n ihares, fire, and brimftone, and an horrible tern- 
pelt upon themf that " they (hall be deltroyed for 
ever X that u they (hair eat of the fruits of their 
own way, and be filled with their own devices || 
that u they mall awake to (hame and everlafting con- 
tempt § that, " not having brought forth good 

fruit,, 

* Deut. xxix 20. \ Pfal. xi. 5, 6. % PfaL xxxvii. 380 
(1 Piov.i. 31.- § Dan. xii. 2» 



I"N ATTENTIVE HEARERS. 9 1 

fruit, they (hall be hewn down, and cart into the 
fire * that 44 they mall be caft into outer darknefs, 
where is weeping and gnaihing of teeth f and that 
u they fhall go away into ©^erlafting punifhment J.^ 5 
Theie, and many other expreffions of the like import, 
are meant to convey fome idea to our minds, of the 
extreme anguifh of the damned : fhipt of all the com- 
forts they here enjoyed, and abufed ; {hut up in the 
prifon of hell, with fpirits of the fame fierce and male- 
volent difp options as themfelves j abandoned to the re- 
proaches of their own felf-accuiing confeiences > and 
©pprelTed with the moft tremendous fenfe of the indig- 
nation of that great Being, whom they ftill continue 
to hate, but feel themfelves utterly unable to refifL 
44 Who knoweth the power of thine anger, O Lord ? 
even according to thy fear, fo is thy w T rath IJ." — Eut 
from all thefe miferies, the deplorable efTecls of impe- 
nitence and unbelief, our great Emmanuel faves us» 
w There is now no condemnation to them that are in 
Chrift Jefus § for " he hath redeemed us from the 
curfe of the law ? being made a curie for us — But 
more than this — 

To the miferies we have been defcribing are to be 
oppofed the jcys and triumphs of heaven. The Chri- 
ftian at death,, freed from all moral pollution, and re- 
Hored to his primitive rectitude, as we have fhewn un- 
der a former head, is admitted into the immediate pre- 
fence of God, and the glorious fociety of the bleifed, 
There he is ever employed in contemplating the di- 
vine excellencies in all their periedlion, in beholding 
the adorable Jefus, his Saviour and friend, in all his 

mediatorial 
* MatLiii. ro. f Matt. viii. iz* 

% Matt. xxv. 46, || Pfal. xc. n. 

I Rom. viii. it Gal, iii, 



92 INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

mediatorial glory, and in converiing with an Innume- 
rable company of angels and fpirits of juft men made 
perfect. And O ! what tongue can defcribe, what 
imagination conceive, the tranfporting joys he feels, re- 
halting from the molt intimate union with the great 
Fountain of all good, and the rnoft perfect fenfe of his 
favour and love impreffed on his heart ? " In thy pre- 
fence," fays David, " is fulnefs of joy, at thy right 
hand are pleafures for evermore 

Such then, is the falvation promifed to them that 
believe. Oh ! how mould our hearts exult, while our 
ears are faluted with thefe bleffed tidings ! — guilt par- 
doned — innocence retrieved — the image of God re- 
fiored — the powers of fin and death vanquifhed — foul 
and body made for ever happy and glorious — and all 
this effected at an expence, that neither men nor an- 
gels can compute. But I forbear, — Some notice 
mull now be taken, 

THIRDLY, of the connexion between faith and 
falvation. It is neceffary, in order to our being faved 9 
that we believe. Now this neceffity arjfes out of the 
divine appointment, and the reafon and nature of the 
thing. 

i . It is the will of God, that thofe who are fayed 
fhould believe. . 

His pleafure in this matter he has fignified to us in 
language the moil plain and decifive. " God fo loved 
the world," fays our Lord to Nicodemus, " that he gave 
his only begotten San, that whofoever believeth in him, 
fhould not periflv but have everlafting life And 
when he commands his apoflles, as he was afcending 
up into heaven, to go into all the world and preach 
the gofpel to every creature y he adds, M He that be- 
lieveth 

# FfaLzYi. iz. f Johniii. i<5. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 93 

Iieveth, and is baptized, {hall be faved ; but he that be- 
Iieveth not fhall be damned The authority of the 

blefled God to dictate to us in any cafe, is unqueilion- 
able j but more efpecially in a matter fo intereiling to 
us as this, and in which the riches of his mercy and 
love are fo wonderfully difplayed. Nor is it a mere 
arbitrary command, but the refult of infinite wifdom 
and goodnefs, as we ihall prefently fee. In the mean 
time, it is to be remarked of many temporal falvations 
recorded in the Bible, which were prefages of that 
more glorious one we are difcouriing of, that they who 
were to be benefited by thefe extraordinary Interpol!- 
tions of divine providence, were required to believe. 
When the Ifraelites approached the Red Sea, under 
the mod tremendous apprehenfions of the event, moun- 
tains rifinor on either fide of them, and an enraged ene- 
my in their rear j Mofes commands them 64 to ftand 
ttill, and fee the falvation of the Lordf," that is, to 
believe. When the brazen ferpent was lifted up in 
the wildernefs, for the healing thofe who had been 
bitten of the fiery flying ferpents } proclamation was 
made through the camp, that whoever looked to it, 
that is, believed, jhould live J. And when Jehofha- 
phat led out his troops againft a far more numerous 
holt of enemies, afTared that God would by a miracu- 
lous interposition fubdue them; he commands the peo- 
ple, as Mofes had done in the inftance juft mentioned, 
" to (land ftffl, and fee the falvation of the Lord :" 
adding, " Believe in the Lord your God, fo ihall you 
be eftabE&ed ; believe his prophets, fo fhall ye prof- 
per ||." Nor is it to be forgot, that our Lord Jefus 
Chriit, when here on earth, required faith of them up- 
on 

*Markxvi 16. f Exod. xiv. 13. 

i Num. xii, 8, 9> || 2 Chron. xx. 17, 22* 



^4 INATTENTIVE HEARERS 

on whofe bodies he wrought miraculous cures : whicTr 
cures afforded a lively emblem, and a happy omen, of 
thofe more noble cures his gofpel is adapted to effect 
on the fouls of men. — But, 

2. There is a fitnefs or fuitablenefs in faith to the 
end of its appointment, fo that the neceifity of it arifes 
out of the nature of the thing itfelf. 

If God of his infinite mercy is difpofed to fave us f 
and has affured us of this by a meffage from heaven r 
authenticated by the cleareft evidence j it is no doubt 
our inter ell and duty to liften to the meffage and give 
full credit to it. If he has fent no lefs a perfon than 
bis own Son into the world to redeem us and make us 
happy, and if he poffeffes all neceffary powers to ac- 
complifh that great and good delign ; it is furely moft 
fit and reafonable that we mould confide in him, and 
exercife all thofe regards towards him which his various 
characters and offices demand. No fober man who 
contemplates faith, accompanied with thofe difpofitions 
and affections neceffary to conftitute a real Chriftian, 
can pronounce it an unreafonable and ufelefs thing. 
But what I have here principally to obferve is, that 
the great bleffmgs of the gofpel cannot be enjoyed 
without the medium of faith. It is true indeed, fin is 
atoned, Satan vanquiihed, and the gates of heaven 
opened to us, and all this by means we had no concern 
in deviling or carrying into effect. But then the ac- 
tual poffeffion of the good thus procured for us, is as 
neceffary as an equitable title to it. And how is that 
good to be poffeffed without a temper of heart fuited 
to the enjoyment of it ? And how is this temper to 
be acquired but by believing ? Here I might {hew 
you the concern which faith has in the converiion of 
a firmer tQ God, and in all thofe exercifes of the mind 

and 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 95 

and heart whereby he Is gradually prepared for the 
heavenly bleffednefs : at the fame time obferving, that 
neither faith itfelf, nor any of thofe pious affections or 
good works which fpring from it, have any meritori- 
ous influence in his falvation. But our prefent dengn 
will not allow us to enter any further into this iubjeCh 
Thus have we conndered the nature of faith, de- 
fcribed the falvation promifed to it, and fhewn the con- 
nection between the one and the other. Let us now 
return to the argument in the text. 

Satan clearly perceiving the influence of faith in the 
great biifinefs of falvation, and well knowing too that 
faith comes by hearing ; ufes all thoie artifices men- 
tioned in the former fermon to divert men's attention 
from the word, and to prevent its falutary effect upon 
their hearts. " He catches it away, left they mould 
believe and be faved." As in the beginning he feduced 
our nrit parents from their allegiance to God, in or- 
der to deprive them of the happinefs they enjoyed ; fo 
he now ufes his utmoft endeavour to counteract the mea- 
fures deviled for the falvaticn of their pcfterity. Glad 
would he be to precipitate the whole human race into 
the fame abyfs of darknefs and milery with himfelf, 
and no means within his power will he leave untried 
in order to compafs his malevolent purpofe. 

Sniffer me then, O ye carelefs hearers of the word, 
to remind you a moment of the awful confequences of 
that impenitence and unbelief in which he willies to 
confirm you. by all the arts he ufes to difiuade you 
from atteniion and confide; ation. 

If ye will oppofe the clear evidence of the goC^cl, 
and Abut your ears againft its loud calls, and gracious 
invitations - y if ye will liiten to the falfe reafonings of 
him who was a liar from the beginning, and reject the 

falutary 



£>5 INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

fakitary admonitions of Chrift and his apofiles ) if ye 
will " tread under foot the Son of God, and count the 
blood of the covenant an unholy thing and if ye 
will, notwithftandmg all the re monfl ranees of reafon 
and confeience, " do defpite unto the Spirit of grace :** 
ye muft endure the punifhment due to fuch accumula- 
ted guilt, and horrid ingratitude. " There remains 
no more facrifice for fins, but a certain fearful looking- 
for of judgment, and fiery indignation which (hall de- 
vour the adverfaries " The Lord Jefus mall be 
revealed from heaven, with- his mighty angels, in fla- 
ming" nre, taking vengeance on them that know not 
God, and that obey not the gofpel of cur Lord Jefus 
Chrift. Who (hall be punimed with everlafiing de- 
flruclion from the prefence of the Lord, and from the 
glory of his power f. 1 ' Confider, O confider thefe 
things y and the Lord give you underftanding. 

It now remains "that we make two or three reflec- 
tions on the general fubjecl: of this difcourfe. 

I. If fat an takes the meafures you have heard, to 
prevent the fuccefs of the gofpel, and to -confirm men 
In impenitence and unbelief \ how truly is he denomi- 
nated by our Saviour " the wicked one and how 
righteous is that fentence which will {hortly be exe- - 
cuted upon him ! 

Every ftep we have taken in our account of the 
methods by which he deludes that clafs of hearers we 
are difcourfing of, eitablimes the evidence that has 
been deduced from Scripture of his malevolence. 
What can be more horribly cruel and malignant, than 
to lay every pofiible fnare to beguile the ignorant, and 
practife upon all the depraved paflions of pride and 
pleafure to ruin the thoughtlefs \ to throw every ima- 
ginable 

* Hcb. s. 26.-.-31. f 2 ThefT. i. 7, 8, 9. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS; 97 

ginable obftru&ion in the way of men's attending to 
their beft interefls, and excite in their breafts eveiy 
unreafonable prejudice againit the only means of fa!- 
vation j and to puriue thefe meafures uniformly in 
every age and country where the gofpel is preached, 
flattering himfelf with the hope of alleviating his own 
mifery, by precipitating others into endlefs perdition ! 
Yea, fo determined is this miferable enemy upon car- 
rying his infernal purpofes into eirecl, that one of his 
machinations, and not the leaft, is to perfuade men 
that his exigence is a mere chimera \ or however, if 
he does exift, that he has it not in his power to tempt 
them, and therefore is not chargeable with that guils 
which entitles him to the denomination of " the 
wicked one." What a moniter of iniquity ! If the 
character of a feducer among men is held in detefla- 
tion, how much more dete Table is the character of 
this arch-feducer ! If it is the voice cf all that a mur- 
derer mould not live, what tenfold vengeance is he de- 
fer ving of, who has been a murderer from the begin- 
ning, and has (lain his thoufands of thoufands ! Weil ! 
the dav is coming, when M the devil who thus decei- 
ved the children of men, (hall be call into the lake of 
fire and brimftone, and be tormented dav and ni^h: 
lor ever. And then mall be heard a great voice of 
much people in heaven, faying, Hallelujah, falvation, 
and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our 
God : for true and righteous are his judgments 

2. How much is it to be lamented, that men will 
fufTer themfelves to be deceived and ruined by the 
devices of this great adverfary ! 

Permit us, O ye thoughtiefs, inconfiderate hearers of 
the wcrd. to expoftulate with ycu for a moment, 

I The 
• * Rev. six. s. xs. ro. 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS. 

The companionate Jefus, who came to feek and to* 
fave that which was loft, has deigned himfelf to ap- 
prize you of your danger, and at the fame time taken 
care to let you know, that, fubtile and powerful as 
this enemy is, he cannot carry his point without your 
confent. Your danger is great, and the rather as 
your nature is depraved, and you are furrounded with 
a thoufand fnares of which fatan knows how to make 
his advantage. But do not excufe yourfelves of blame, 
by pleading your incompetence to refill fo mighty an 
adverfary. To be tempted is not your fin, but it is 
your fin to comply with the temptation. You may, 
you can, you ought to be on your guard. Indifpofed 
as you are to attend to your beft interefts, you are 
capable of hearing us, and of confidering the force of 
-our reafonings. 

Why, O why, will ye thrufl all thefe things from 
your minds ? Should what we fay prove to be true, 
what an addition will it be to your mifery to reflecr, 
in the great day of account, that your heart d^fpifed 
reproof, and that you would not incline your ear to 
them that inftrufted you ! Realize that day. Be 
perfuaded that it will come. It is however not yet 
come. Now, now is the accepted time, now is the 
day of falvation. The truths we preach may be pain- 
ful to you, and to urge them upon you merely for the 
fake of giving you pain, would be crueL But if the 
attentive confideration of them will be falutary to you, 
(and we firmly believe that fuch is their tendency,) 
can you wonder that we are importunate with you ? 
Make* the trial. If you never before liftened to a 
fermon, O be perfuaded to liften to this ! Carry it 
away with ycu. Revolve it in your mind. Exa- 
mine 



INATTENTIVE HEARERS, 95^ 

mine what we have faid by the tefts of impartial rea- 
ion, and 'the facred Scriptures. And, bowing your 
knee at the feet of the great God, earneftly befeech 
him, for Chrift's fake, to affitt you in your conflicts 
with this fubtle adverfary, and the deceitful reafonings 
of your own hearts. You have every imaginable en- 
couragement fo to do. And fhould you fucceed, how 
glorious will your triumph be over fin and the powers 
of darknefs t 

3. And laftly, Let us admire and adore the grace 
of God which defeats the defigns of fatan, and makes 
the word effectual upon the hearts of multitudes, not* 
withftanding all the opposition it meets with. 

Many a one who has been induced to hear the go£* 
pel by motives of mere curiofity, has neverthelefs re- 
ceived falutary and abiding imprerTions from it. He 
has entered the aflembly with a thoughtlefs and difli- 
pated mind, and has gone away w T ith a heart deeply 
affected with his everlafting concerns. The provi- 
dence of God in fo difpofing external circumltances 7 
as that fuch perfons mould hear the word, and the 
grace of God in fetting it home with energy on their 
hearts, cannot be enough devoutly acknowledged, and 
gratefully remembered. Nor is there an inftance o£ 
any one, ; favingly benefited by the inilr u&ions and in- 
vitations of the gofpel, who will not readily admit the 
truth of what the apoflle afferts, that as it is our duty 
" to work out our falvation with fear and trembling, 
fo it is God that w T orketh in us to will and to do of 
his good pleafure — And how very pleating t© 
think, that, however in too many fad inftances mini- 
fters have occaflon to complain, " Who hath believed 

our 

* Phil. ii. 13,^13. 



JQO INATTENTIVE HEARER?* 

our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord re- 
vealed * ?" the day is hafiening on, when an infinite 
multitude mail acknowledge with hofannas of the 
loudeft praife, that the word of the kingdom, though 
treated by many with indifference and cdntempt, was 
the power of God to their everlafting falvation,. 



BIS- 



DISCOURSE III. 



THE CHARACTER OF ENTHUSIASTIC 
HEARERS CONSIDERED. 



Mat. xiii. 5, 6* 

Some fell upon Jlony places, where they had not 
much earth : and forthwith they fprung up y be~ 
caufe they had no deepnefs of earth. And when 
the fun was up, they were fcorched, and beeaufe 
they had not root they withered away. 

OUR Saviour's view in this parable is, to lay open 
the principles, motives, and conduct of the vari- 
ous forts of perfcns who hear the gofpel. The cha- 
racters he draws are four — the inattentive— the en- 
thusiastic — the worldly-minded- — the sincere. The 
fir ft of thefe we have coniidered, and proceed now, 

SECONDLY, to the enthusiastic, or thofe upon 
whom, to appearance, the word has an inftantaneous 
and mighty effect., but who, yet, reap no real advan-^ 
tage from it. 

The temper and conduct of thefe perfons are ftrik-- 
ingly reprefented in the text, which our Saviour thus 
expounds * ; " He that received the feed into ftony 
I 3 places,, 
# Ver, 20, 21, 



102 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS, 

places, the fame Is he that heareth the word, and anon 
■with joy receiveth it : yet hath he not root in himfelr^ 
but dureth for a while : for when tribulation or perfe- 
ction arifeth becaufe of the word, by and by he is 
offended." Here are four things to be diftin&ly con- 
fidered. \ 

L The character of thefe hearers previous to their 
hearing the w r ord : 

II. The effect it mftantly produces on their minds i 

III. Their failure afterwards : and, 

IV. The caufe of their aporlafy. We begin, 

I. With the character of thefe hearers previous to 
their hearing the word. 

They are compared to Jlony or rocky ground * 5 
which is unfavourable to cultivation 4 but yet has a 
little mould or earth call over it, fuited to receive 
feed, and in which it may lodge a while, and diffemi- 
nate itfelf. So that this ground is partly bad and 
partly good. And thus are very aptly defcribed, the 
sniferably perverfe and depraved ftate of the will, on 
the one hand, and the warmth and livelinefs of the na- 
tural paffions, on the other. Thefe qualities often 
meet in one and the fame perfon, and bear a different 
afpeft to religion, the one being unfavourable and the 
other favourable to it. 

1. It is true of thefe hearers that their will is wretch*. 
edly depraved. 

Stone is a figure ufed in Scripture,, to fignify the ob* 
ftinate averfion of the mind to what is holy and good. 
So Ezekiel fpeaks of a Jlony heart , in oppafition to a 
u heart of flefh f and Paul, of the living epiftles of 
Chrift being written, not on tables of Jlone, but " rleffo- 
ly tables of the heart There is in perfons of this 

character^ 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. JOJ 

character, a certain prejudice againft ferious religion, 
which perverfely refills all reafonings, expoftulaticns, 
and perfuafions refpeeting it. " Their carnal minds 
are enmity againft God, for they are not fubjeft to the 
law of God, neither indeed can be *. n " Their words 
are ft out againft God f." They fay, "Who is the 
Lord that we friould obey his voice % ?" " What is 
the Almighty that we ftiould ferve him [j ?" " We 
will not have God to reign over us $ " We will 
walk after aur own devices, and we will every one, do 
the imagination of his evil heart ^[." Thus " they 
make their faces harder than a rock ** > " and M their 
hearts as an adamant ftone, left they fhould hear the 
law f f " They are ftiif-hearted, rebellious and im- 
pudent X t n °t onl y u alienated from the life of God 3 
but," in fome inftances, u paft feeling ||||."" 

What a miferable ftate of the human mind is this I 
Hearts thus fet on iniquity, and thus unyielding to the 
dictates of confcience, providence, and the Scriptures, 
may well be compared to Jiony, flinty, rocky grounds 
There are indeed degrees of depravity, and fome mem, 
through finful indulgence, become more ftupid than 
others } fo that their consciences are faid to be " fear- 
ed with a hot iron § § But it is true of all, while in a 
natural ftate, that their will is averfe to that which is 
good. They do not with their mind ferve God, and 
they will not come unto Chrift that they may have 
life. Wherefore the figurative language of the text, 
applies to the fort of hearers we are now difcourfmg 
of, in common with all others in an unrenewed ftate. 

. —And 

* Rom. viii. 7. f Mai. iii. 13. % Exod. v. 2. 

t Job xxi. r5» § Luke xix. 14. Jer. xviii. I2„ 

** Jer. v. 3* ff Zech. vii. 12. \\ £zek. ii. 3,4. 

§1 Eph. iv. iS, ip» \{ 1 Tim. iv,s* 



I:0£ ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS* 

—And yet, with all this depravity of the will, they 
have, 

2. Warm and lively paffions ; a circumltance i» it- 
felf not. a little favourable to religion. 

This is admirably expreffed, by the earth or mould 
faid to be canY over the rock, which was of a nature fo 
rich and luxuriant, that the feed inftantly mingled with 
it, and expanding, fprung. up, and created a beautiful 
verdure which pi omifed great fruitfulnefs. Nothing, 
was wanting to produce the defired effect, but a fuffU 
cient depth of earth. Had the ground at bottom been 
properly cultivated, this fine mould caft upon it, would 
have affifted and forwarded vegetation but that re- 
maining hard and rocky, this had only a temporary ef- 
fect, and ferved little other purpofe than to deceive 
the ex-peclation of the huibandman. 

Such is truly the cafe in the matter before us. The 
heart, like the ilony ground, is indifpofed to what is 
good ; and the affections, like the earth call over it, 
r are warm and lively % } wherefore, the word not enter- 
ing into the former, and yet mingling with the latter, 
produces no real fruit, but only the gay and fplendid 
appearance of an external profeflion. And here it is 
.further to be remarked, that however the pafiions are 
of excellent ufe in religion, if the heart be right with 
God y yet, this not being the cafe, their influence is 
rather pernicious than falutary : indeed, the more ea- 
ger and impetuous the natural temper, the greater 
evil is in this cafe to be apprehended from it, both to 
the man himfelf, and to thofe with whom he is con- 
nected. ,As to himfelf, miftaking the warm efforts of 
mere palhon for real religion, he inftantly concludes, 
that he is without doubt a real Chriftian, and fo is ef- 
fentially injured by the imoofition he puts upon him- 
felf,. 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. IOJ 

felf. And then, his extravagant expreffions of raptu- 
rous zeal, which, having the colour of exalted piety, 
ihike the eyes of obfervers with admiration, like the 
pleafing verdure on the ilony. ground , thefe in the 
end, through his apoftafy, bring a foul reproach upon 
religion, and fo deeply wound the hearts of all the real 
friends of it. And from this view of the fubject, we 
fee what it is diitinguifh.es thefe hearers from thofe 
confidered in the former difcourfe : it is the different 
temperature of their animal fpirits.and paffions. They 
are both alike indifpofed to real religion, but thofe are 
cool and referved, thefe eager and violent. And it of- 
ten happens, that the former have a good deal of natu- 
ral underftanding and fagacity, while the latter are re- 
markable for their weaknefs and credulity. 

But it will be proper, before we pafs on, to exa- 
mine more particularly the character of the Enthu- 
fiaft. He has a lively imagination, but no judgment 
to correct it ) and warm feelings, but neither wifdoro- 
nor refolution to controul them. Struck with appear- 
ances, he inftantly admits the reality of things, with- 
out allowing himfelf time to enquire into their nature, 
evidence, and tendency. And impreflions thus recei- 
ved, whether from objects prefented to the fenfes, or 
reprefentations made to the fancy, produce a mighty 
and inftantaneous effect, on his paffions. Thefe agitate 
his whole frame, and precipitate him into action, with- 
out any intervening confederation, reflection, or prof- 
peel. And his actions, under the impulfe of a heat- 
ed imagination, are either right or wrong, ufeful or 
pernicious, juft as the notions he has thus haftily adopts 
ed, happen to be conformable to truth or error. So 
we mall fee the countenance of a man of this complec- 
tion kindling into rapture and ecftafy at the idea of 

fume thing 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 



fomething new and marvellous ; a flood of tear£ 
ft reaming down his cheeks at the reprefentation of 
fome moving fcene of diflrefs 5 his face turning pale, 
and his limbs trembling, at the apprehenfion of fome 
impending danger ; his whole frame diftorted with 
rage at the hearing of fome inftance of cruelty \ and 
his eye fparkling with joy in the profpedi of fome fan- 
cied blifs. Nor is it tc be wondered, that one who is 
wholly at the mercy of thefe paffions, without the 
guidance of a fober underftanding, and the controul 
of a welt-difpofed heart, mould, as is often the cafe, 
break out into loud and clamorous language, affume 
the moft frantic geftures, and be guilty of the moft 
ftrange and extravagant aftions. 

Such then is the character of the perfons defcribed 
in our text, previous to their hearing the word. 
Their hearts, like the fiony ground, are hard, unculti- 
vated, and indifpofed to what is truly good $ and yet 
they poffefs lively imaginations, and warm paffions, 
which, like the fine mould upon the rock, would be of 
excellent ufe in the great bulinefs of religion, if it 
were not for this other elfential defect. We proceed 
therefore, 

II. To connder the effect which the word inftantly 
produces on the minds of thefe perfons, as our Saviour 
has admirably defcribed it. 

" The feed" that fell on the ftony ground " forth- 
with fprung up," that is, as our Lord expounds it, 
M he heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it." 
Here, keeping in our eye the character juft drawn, 
there are three things to be confidered — his receiving 
the word — his receiving it immediately, as Mark has 
it — and his receiving it with joy % From this account 
one would be apt at firft view to conclude, that this 

mar* 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEADERS* 10? 

■mzn is without doubt a real Chriftian j but the event 
proves the contrary. Wherefore, it will be neceffary 
to examine very attentively thefe three particular 
I. He receives the word. 

Receiving is a figurative term, and may here be ex<= 
-plained of what is the confequence of admitting any 
doctrine to be true, that is, the profiling it, It is 
indeed ufed in Scripture to fignify faith itfelf. 44 As 
many as received him, to them gave he power to be- 
come the fons of God, even to them that believe on 
his name u As ye have received Chrift Jefus the 

Lord, fo walk ye in himf." Nor is there any incon- 
venience in underflanding it here of faith. For the 
hearers our Lord here fpeaks of do believe, and indeed 
Luke fays fo expiefsly J. In like manner Simon and 
many others in Scripture are faid to believe, who yet 

were not real Christians. 
0 

Now, as faith has the promife of falvation annexed 
to it, and as lome believe who yet are not laved, a di- 
ftinetion becomes neceiTary : and the common one of 
an hiilorical and a divine faith is eafy and natural. It 
refpects, as we have (hewn at large in a former fer- 
mon, the degree of afTent which the mind gives to the 
truth, the grounds of it, the temper with which it is 
accompanied, the effects it produces, and the influence 
which brings it into exhtence. The man whofe faith 
is merely hiilorical, gives only a feeble aflent to the 
truth ; his faith is little more than opinion 5 he be- 
lieves what is told him, juft as I mould believe a flory 
of fome trifling matter that had happened at a diftance, 
wherein I am no way concerned. Or if he will infift, 
that his affent to what he calls the gofpel, is firm and 
genuine j yet his notion of the gofpel has perhaps a 

great 

* John i. 12. I Col ii. 6. \ Luke viii. 14. 



108 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS* 

great deal of error mingled with it. And then, he 
receives it not upon the divine teflimony, or a clear 
perception cf the internal and external evidence of it ^ 
but upon the confident affertions of others, whofe 
cagernefs and zeal, expreHed by their loud voice, and 
violent gefture, have a mighty effect upon that credu- 
lity we fpoke of under the former head. Further, 
liis faith is not cardial y it has not the hearty appro- 
bation of his judgment and will. Nor "does it pro- 
duce the kindly and acceptable fruits of love and obe- 
dience. Yet it is not without its effects, for being of 
that enthufiaftic turn of mind before defcribed, his 
Imagination and paffions have a great influence on his 
profeflion. Whence thofe ilrong appearances of fin- 
cerity, earneftnefs, and zeal, whereby he impofes upon 
himfelf and others. Now he loudly affirms he be- 
lieves, fcarcely admitting that man to be a ChriiHan 
who at all hefitates. Then he treats cool reafoning, 
and calm reflection, as inimical to religion. And fo 
goes on to pronounce the charge of hypocrify upon 
all who fall not in exactly with his notions, and are 
not as eager in the defence of them as himfelf. 
fci Come fee," fays he with Jehu, " my zeal for the 
Lord of Rolls In fuch fenfe do thefe hearers of 

whom our Saviour fpeaks In the text, receive the 
word. And if we reverfe the character juft drawn, 
we (hall have a clear idea of him who receives the 
truth in the love of it, and who believes to the faving 
of his foul j remembering at the fame time, that as fa- 
cing faith has divine truth for its object, fo it rifes in- 
to exiftence through the influence of divine grace. 

2. He receives the word immediately. 

The feed is faid in the text to fpring up forthwith, 

and 

* 2 Kings x. 16. 



ENTHUSIASTIC -HEARERS. lCg 

ar.d fo the idea may refpecl -the quicknefs of the vege- 
tation. But Mark applies the term immediately to 
the reception of the word. And indeed it is true 
both of the reception and the operation of it. He re- 
ceives it not obliquely or circuitoufly , but Jiraitly or 
directly, as the word figniiies *. It is no fconer fpo- 
ken than it is admitted to be true. A certain predi- 
lection in favour of the fpeaker, his eagernefs and po~ 
iitivity, and many other accidental circumftances, be- 
get affent — immediate ailent to what he has no clear 
conception of, and the evidence of which" he gives 
himfelf no time to confider. He is not embarrafled, 
as we faid before, with any, the leaft doubt, nor does 
he feel himfelf difpofed to helitate, reflect, or compare 
w 7 hat he thus haftily and confufedly hears, with the 
Scriptures of truth. So, without either his judgment 
being informed, or his will renewed, he is impetuoufly 
carried away with a mere found ; his affections are 
fet afloat, and his pafTions wrought up, he knows not 
how, into a wild ferment, the effect of which as in- 
ilantly appears in his countenance, gefture, and con- 
<luct. He profefTes the truth, becomes a flaming de- 
fender of it, and out-ftrips' all around him in acts of 
intemperate zeal, as haftily and inconfiderately done 
as the word was haftily and inconfiderately received. 
So his converfton is confidered by himfelf and fome 
other weak people as inftantaneous, and on that ac- 
count not only extraordinary, but the more fure and 
genuine. — But what deferves our more particular at- 
tention, is, 

3. His receiving the word with joy. 

Joy is a pleafing elevation of the fpirits, excited b^ 
the pcffefTion of fome prefent, or the expectation of\ 

K fome 



•IlC ENTHUSIASTIC HEADERS. 

Tome future good. Now, the goipel Is good t&vu 
and fo adapted to give pleafure to the mind. He 
therefore who receives it with joy, receives it as it 
ought to be received, But the man our Saviour here 
defcribes is not a real Chriflian, his joy therefore mult 
have fomething in it, or in the circumflances accom- 
panying it, diftinguiihabis from that of a genuine be- 
liever. Of Herod it is faid that u he heard John 
gladly * and from the ftory it clearly appears He- 
rod remained, notwithftanditfg, the fame profligate 
man he was before. How then is the joy of the one 
to be diftingulihed from that of the other ? I anfwer, 
by what precedes it — by what excites it— and by the 
effeBs of it. 

I. Let us confider what precedes it. 

The real Chriitian, previous to his enjoying folid 
peace, is ufually much depreffed and caft down. Nor 
is his dejection the effect. of bodily diforder, or an ill- 
temperature of the animal fpirits, or of fomething he 
can give no rational account of. It is an anxiety oc- 
casioned by a fenfe of fin, an apprehenfion of God's 
difpleafure, and a fear that he may be denied thofe 
fpiritual pleafures he eameftly thirfts after. The caufe 
of his trouble is not a chimera, it has a real exigence 
an his breaft, it has a painful and regular operation 
there, and he can reafon in a plain fenfible manner 
about it. Now, as the gcfpel is adapted to relieve the 
jnind of thofe complaints, and is on that account fly led 
the gofpei, or glad tidings, fo there are many paffages 
ivherein it is directly addrefTed to pcrfons of this de- 
fcription. And many hiftorical inrlances we meet 
with in the Bible, of thofe who have been comforted 
and made happy by its encouraging reafodngs, and 

gracious 

* Mark vi. 3.0. 



£NTKUSlAS7iC HEARERS, ZXt 

gracious prormfe s.> From the teftimorjy therefore of 
Scripture, and the nature of the gofpel itfelf, it may 
be rationally conceded, it cannot afford true joy to 3 
heart that is not thus prepared to receive it. The 
degree indeed of affliction neceffary to be endured, in 
order to prepare men for the cheerful reception of di- 
vine truth, it may not he e?fy for us to determine, 
Gcd however knows : and fome he leads on to the 
enioyment of religious pleafures in a more gentle and 
gradual manner than others. Eut it Hands to reafon^ • 
that the joy the heart feels mull bear fome proportion 
to the anxiety it has Suffered, 

Now, vain, light, enthufiaftic perfons, are in a grea& 
degree ft rangers to thefe painful exercifes of mind w T e 
have been jutl defcribing. It is on a fudden, induced 
by fome motive of curioilty, that they hear the word " 7 
?j& fuddenly they receive it , and as fuddenly they are 
elevated and transported by it, Their minds, previous 
to the joy they boatl of, are wholly unoccupied with 
any ferious, fubflautial, fentiments about divine things 
Some perfons, indeed, who come within the descrip- 
tion of the text,, may have had general conviclions of 
nn, and alarming appreheniions of the wrath of God* 
But thefe painful feelings are defultory and tempora^ 
ry, and capable of being quickly allayed, if not entire* 
iy removed, by the flupifying opiate of worldly plea- 
fu: ;s. Wherefore a rapturous joy, wdiich fuddenly 
Succeeds to a kind of dread that has no ingenuous dif- 
pofition mingled with it, as well as a joy preceded by 
no anxiety at all, may be naturally fufpecled to origU 
nate in enthuiiafm, rather than religion.— But, 
2. Let us enquire what it is that excites this joy^ 
The caufes of that elevation of the fpirlts which we 
commonly call joy are various. Wine and other ene- 

briating 



112 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS* 

briating liquors, give a brifk circulation to the blood r 
and nervous fluids, and fo exhilarate and gladden the 
heart, A fudden impreffion made on the fenfes by 
external objects will have the like effect. The reve- 
ries of the imagination, in a' dream or delirium, will- 
create a fafcihating kind of pleafure. Admiration,, 
wonder, and aitonimment, have d great influence to 
produce it. Yea, the more tender paffions of pity 
and commiferation are accompanied with a degree of 
complacency and delight. So that joy may owe its 
exigence to the fenfes, the imagination, and the tu- 
multuous or foothing operation of the other paffions y 
rrs well as to found reafoning, and a well-grounded 
perfuafion of real truth, and of our intereft in the 
great ble (Tings of it, which are the only legitimate 
fources of religious joy. 

Now, this obferved, it is eafy to conceive how a man 
of the can: our Saviour here fpeaks of, may be faid to- 
receive the word with joy. In feme inftances, it is the 
word itfelf, the mere found, without any idea affixed to 
it, that creates joy. The effect is inftantly and me- 
chanically produced, by the tone and cadence of the 
voice, accompanied by an appearance, attitude, and 
getiure, that happen to pleafe. The man is delighted, 
elevated, and furprifed, and he knows not why. Fa els 
might be mentioned directly in point. Some have 
been heard to fay, at the paffihg out of an affembly, in 
words to this effect, " What a heavenly preacher ! he 
fpoke like an angel- — but I could not understand him." 
In other initances, it is not the found only, but the 
fenfe that affects. Here, however, it will be found, 
that the joy the man feels, is purely the effecl: of his 
imagination being amufed with objects new, great, and 
marvellous, or with fcenes of a foft,. tender,, moving 

kind y, 



INTHUSIASTIC HEARERS a " I I J 

kind \ and not of his hearts being relieved of a burden 
with which it had been cppreiTed, or his being com- 
forted with the hope of obtaining that fpiritual good 
he had thiriled after ; for he had neither groaned un- 
der the burden of :ln, nor had he afpired to true holi- 
nefs. 

To exemplify what we mean, we will fuppofe the 
preacher to defcribe the joys of heaven, by linking 
figures taken from fenfible objecls. He holds up to 
view a paradife exquintely beautiful and enchanting 
the trees, (hrubs, 3nd flowers, all perfecl in their kind, 
arranged in the loviiieil order, and affording a fra- 
grance mod delightful to the fmell, and fruits moll de- 
licious to the tafte \ verdant banks, purling ftreams, 
ihadow bowers, tranfporting profpecls 5 and the joy 
heightened now, by the foft melody of the grove, then 
the rapturous fymphony of human voices, and then the 
loud and fwelling notes of angelic bands. This, this, 
he affures the liftening multitude is heaven ) here they 
ih.ill enjoy increafmg pleafure^, without the leaft anx- 
iety, pain, or difguft ; and without the moil diftant 
apprehenfion of either interruption or end. Is it to 
be wondered, that fuch a fcene, painted in the livelier! 
colours, beheld by a glov.irsg imagination, and realiz- 
ed by unfufpefling credulity, mould give ecilatic joy 
ro a carnal heart ? It is not. But is there religion ia 
all this ? Ah ! no. 

So likewiie, we may eafily conceive how a pleafing. 
kind of fenfation, excited in the breall by a pathetic 
description of mifery, particularly the fufferings of 
Ghriil, may be miilaken for religion* Many a one has 
heard this fad tale told, and inftantly concluded from 
his feelings, which partook partly of pain and p!eafuie 3 
that he loved Chrift. The feafation, in thefe in- 
K 3 fiances, 



TT4 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 

dances, is precifely the fame with that which a tender 
fpeclator feels, at a tragical exhibition in the theatre. 
And if I might be- allowed to relate a little ftory X 
have fomewhere met with, it would both illuftrate and 
confirm what has been aiTerted. Gne of a compaf- 
iionate difpofition, but grofsly ignorant, (perhaps -aw 
Indian), hearing for the fir ft time, in a Chriftian affem- 
bly, a ftriking description of our Saviour^ laft paflion, 
melted into tears } and after the fervice was over, ea- 
gerly befought the preacher to be ingenuous with him, 
and tell him whether the fac~l he had related was true^ 
for he hoped in God, that fuch a cruel deed could ne- 
ver have been perpetrated. 

But to bring the matter flill nearer. We will fun- 
pofe what is faid to be diverted of all imagery and that 
men are told in plain words, that Jefus Chrift came to 
procure for them the pardon of their fins, falvatiort 
&om the mifeTies of hell, and a right to future and 
eternal happinefs : I fee no reafon why a general ap- 
prehenfion of thefe truths, and a general affent to 
them, may not excite fome pleafure, yea, even joy in 
their breafts, without their hearts being made a whit 
the better. Gan any one, whofe confcience tells him 
be has finned, who feels remorfe for it, and dreads the 
tremendous confequence of dying under the curfe of 
Almighty God j can, I fay, fuch perfon avoid being 
anxious ? And if fo, can he do otherwife than rejoice, 
when he apprehends, though the ground of the ap- 
prehenfion may be a miftaken one, that God has forgi- 
ven him ? 

What dread has the confcience of many an ignorant 
bigotted Papiit felt, from a conviction of his having 
finned ! And how happy has he inftantly felt himfelf, 
upon his having confeffed to the prieft, and received- 

abfolution 1 



ENTHUSIASTIC REARERS* 11^ 

abiolution ; while alas, he lias remained as wicked 
as ever ! In this ea r e, truth is mixed with error, and 
the falfe joy he feels, arifes out of this corrupt mixture. 
Me believes God is difpofed to pardon fin, for the fake 
of Chriil. So, agreeable to the language of the text, 
he may be faid to receive the word with joy. But 
then it is his miftaken notion about confeffion, and the 
power of the pried to abfolve him, thus mingled with 
his general alTent to the Chriftian doctrine, that has 
the main influence to excite that pleafing fenfation he 
feels and boalls of. And the cafe is much the fame 
with many Proteilants as well as Papilts. The man ? 3 
confcience reproaches him for certain crimes, and he 
feels himfelf wretched. He is told God is merciful ^ 
and will forgive men their fins for Chrifl's fake. The 
news give him joy, for he flatters himfelf he mall 
efcape the punifhment he dreaded. But his joy in 
without foundation, for he has no jufl idea of the evil 
of fin itfelf, no ingenuous forrow for it, and no flncere 
defire to be delivered from it. 

In like manner, we may eafily conceive how a man 
of this character may be amufed, entertained, and even 
tranfported with a hope of heaven. He is told, and 
very truly too, that in heaven there is a perfect free- 
dom from all pain and forrow, and an uninterrupted 
enjoyment of the moft exquinte delights. Thefe tid- 
ings he receives with joy. But the moment he is told, 
thatrthis freedom from pain is accompanied with a free- 
dom from fin, and that thefe pofitive pleafures refult 
from communion with a holy God, and a participation 
of his purity and rectitude \ the moment, 1 fay, he is 
told this, his joy abates, languishes, and dies. — But I 
forbear. What has been faid may fufRce to enable us 

to 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 



to diftinguiih on the important queftion, what it is that 
excites our joy ! — We are next to conhder, 
3. What are the effeBs of it > 

The joy a real Chriftian feels, is fober, rational^ 
-well-grounded, and will admit of the molt pleafing re- 
Ht£iions~He poffeffes himfelf; He can calmly rcafon 
upon the Hate of his mind, and thofe great truths and* 
ebjecls, the contemplation of which makes him happy J 
and he can recollect the pleaiures he has enjoyed on 
fome fpecial occaiions, with compofure and fatisfaclioru 
* — It humbles him. The higher he afcends the mount 
of communion with God, the lefs he appears in his 
own eyes. Thofe beams of the fun of righteoufnefe 
which gladden his heart, throw a light upon his follies 
and fins. With Job, u he abhors himfelf, and repents 
in dull and afhes And, as the apoflie expreffes it 5 

1-4 thinks foberly of himfelf as he ought to think -jv' — » 
His joy infpires him with meeknefs, candour, and be- 
nevolence. It allays, if not entirely extinguishes, the 
rage of violent paihon, fans the ilame of fervent chari- 
ty, and puts the foul into a temper, to unite cordially 
with all good men, to pity the bad, and to forgive its 
bitterer! enemies, — His joy, in a word, makes him 
watchful and holy. He rejoices with trembling, is 
upon his guard againft every thing, that may>difturb 
the tranquillity of his mind, holds fin at a diftance as 
Ins greatelt enemy, and afpires with growing ardour 
to the likenefs of the ever-bleffed God. 

On the contrary, who that contemplates the cha- 
racter of the credulous, felf-deceived enthufiaft, but 
muft fee what has been faid of the real Chriftian, aw- 
fully reverfed in his temper and conducl ? Is he fober ? 
prudent, and felf-colledted ? Ah ! no. He is little 

better 

# Job xliL 6\ f Rom. xii. 3, 



j ENTHUSIASTIC HEADERS, Jlj 

better than a madman, or one drunk with wine where* 
in is excefs. His heaven is a fool's paradife, and his 
account of it as unintelligible as the frantic talk of one 
in a delirium. Is he humble ? Far from it. The 
pride of religious frenzy fwells him into importance, 
Imagining himfelf a favourite of Heaven, he looks 
down upon his fellow-mortals with an air of indiffe- 
rence, if not contempt — " Stand at a diftance, I am 
holier than thou." Is he meek, candid, and benevo- 
lent ? So much the reverfe, that the very names of 
thefe virtues found harfhly in his ear, and ftand for 
little elfe, in his opinion, than punllanimity, formality, 
and hypoerify. Is he confcientious and circumfpecl: in 
his deportment ? No. Boafting of his freedom, he 
can take liberties that border on immorality, and treat 
the fcruples of a weak believer as indicating a legal 
fpirit. Superior to the drudgery of duties^ he ivalks 
at large, in no danger of being thrown into fufpenfe 
about his rlate towards God, by what he calls human 
frailties ; and not doubting but that his zeal, v/hich, 
like the Perfian fcythes, mows down, without mercy, 
all before him, will open his way to a triumphant 
etown in heaven. 

Now all thefe things confidered — what precedes— 
—what excites — and what follows the joy our Savi- 
our here fpeaks of, we (hall be at no lofs to diftinguifli 
clearly between the joy of an enthunaft and that of a 
real Chriilian. To proceed. 

Having thus received the word with joy, he pro- 
felTes himfelf a Chriilian. And thus much muft be 
faid in his favour, that being fure he is right, he is not 
aihamed of his faith. This ingenuity and franknefs 
of temper, fee are s him from all. imputation of hypocri- 
fy, an.d induces his friends to hope, that, with all his 

frailties^. 



1 1 8 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS *- 

frailties, he may poffibly be a good man. So he is ad- 
mitted to the participation of divine ordinances, is en- 
lolled among the number of profeffing Chriftians, and 
xor a while, allowing for the extravagancies of intem- 
perate zeal, behaves himfelf in a manner not to be ma- 
terially cenfured. But— what is the event ? Sad to- 
iky f — Apoflafy. But the coniideration of this, with 
what follows, we (hall refer to the next fermon. 

In the mean while, let me befeech thofe who an- 
iwer to the character we have been defciibing, to con- 
sider ferioufl-y their ftate towards God. Confidera- 
tion is, I am fenrlble, what you, Sirs, are not accurtom- 
ed to \ but in a matter of fuch confequence as this^ 
I would hope you will, at leafl for this once, yield to 
our requeft. Let me afk you then, Can you fincere-- 
ly believe that a religion, which confifls wholly in a 
rapturous elevation of the paffions, independent of the 
clear dictates of the judgment, and the governing dif- 
pohticns of the heart, can be acceptable to God ? 
Surely if there be fuch a thing as religion, it mud ori- 
ginate in the underfranding and confcience, atid fo dii- 
fufe its influence over the paffions. It mull confift in 
an affectionate regard to the divine authority, fpring-. 
ing from a clear idea of the diFerer.ce between good 
and evil, and an ardent deflre to efcape the latter and 
enjoy the former. And Oh ! how deplorable will 
your condition be, mould you in the great cay of ac- 
count, after all your flaming pretentions to religion, be 
found utterly deititute of it ! 

Nothing has, I hope, dropped in the conrfe of this 
fermon, which may convey an idea to any mind unfa- 
vourable to religion, as if it had no concern with the 
paffions, and were not adapted to afibrd joy to the 
keart. It is indeed moft interchange to the paffions, 

and- 



■ENTHUSIASTIC HEAF.E"F*5 e Hp 

and His been found, by the experience of the wife ft 
and beit of men, to be the pleafanteft thing in the 
whole world. Let a man fpeculate as long as he Will 
upon the great truths cr religion, if he does not feel 
them, if they neither warm las heart, nor influence 
his life, what is he the better ? Neither his profound 
knowledge, nor the contempt in which he holds thofe 
cf the oppofite character for their ignorance and cre- 
dulity, will do him any real good. The apoftle Paul, 
^vith all his accurate and fuperior understanding of the 
great things of God, w>as a warm, lively, paffionate 
Chriilian. He knew what it was to be tranfported on 
occafions almcft beyond himfelf. " Whether," fay; 
he to the Corinthians, " we be befides ourfelves, it is 
to God : or whether we be fober, it is for your caufe* 
For the love of Chrift conitraineth us May we 

fuch Chriftians as he was ! 

To conclude. What has been faid will, I hope, 
have an effect to relieve the humble but atHicted Chri- 
ft ian, of fome uncomfortable doubts w T ith which he 
may have been opprerTed, refpedling his ftate towards 
God. You, my friends, who are of a timorous make, 
and through various caufes of a forrowful fpirit, are 
•trangers to the rapturous feelings of which thefe con- 
fident people we have been defcribing, fo much boaft. 
But it does not from thence follow, that you are ut- 
terly unacquainted with the pleafures of religion, and 
that your hearts are not ririit towards God. Ycu 
have feen the difference between good and evil \ you 
have deeply lamented your fins, and hungered and 
thirfted after righteoufnefs ' ? you have cordially appro- 
ved of that method of falvation divine grace has ap- 
pointed, and have eritrufted your immortal all to the 

* 2 Cor. v. 13, 14. 



t2C ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 

hands of Chrift. Why then fhould you fear ? Be of 
good courage. The bleffed Jefus is your friend, and 
he will keep what you have committed to him agaiml 
the great day. 

PART II. 

The characler of enthusiastic hearers is now under 
consideration. Their temper and conduct are defcri- 
bed with remarkable clearnefs and precilion in the 
text *. u Some feeds fell upon ftony places, where 
they had not much earth : and forthwith they fprung 
up, becaufe they had no deepnefs of earth. And when 
the fun was up, they were fcorched, and becaufe they 
had not root, they withered away." Our Saviour's 
expofition of this part of the parable runs thus f : 
" He that received the feed into liony places, the fame 
is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy recei- 
ve th it : yet hath he not root in himfelf, but dureth 
for a while : for when tribulation or perfecution ari- 
feth, becaufe of the word, by and bye he is offended." 
Now here we have propofed to confider — the charac- 
ter of thefe perfons previous to their hearing the word 
—the efiecl: it inftantly produces on their minds — 
their failure afterwards — and the caufes of it. The 
two firft of thefe enquiries were the fubjecls of the 
preceding fermon, and we go on now, 

III. To confider the lamentable Shoftafy of thefe 
deluded men. x 

The feed that fell upon ftony places, and forthwith 
fprung up, in a little time " withered away." It did 
not rife into the ftalk and ear, and fo bear fruit - } but 
the verdure paifed off almoft as foon as it was beheld, 
' v , and 

# Mat. xiii. 5, 6. t Ver. 20, 



'ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. Ill 

and the feed itfelf totally perithed *. Tills our Lord 
explains of the unhappy man's u enduring for a while, 
and then being offended or, as Luke has it f , his 
" believing for a while, and then falling away." Here 
two things will defer ve cur notice — the term of his 
profeilicn — and the manner in which it is renounced. 

I. The term of his profemon is fliort. 

Between the icwinc- of feed in the decline of the 
year, and the reaping at the following harreft, there 
is a confiderable intervening fpace : but the feed the 
text fpeaks of fprings up and is gone in a few days or 
weeks. So here. It is by degrees, and for a courie 
of years, the genuine Chriitian is advancing towards 
perfection. But alas ! the poor, vain, unprincipled 
profefTor, is inftantly at the zenith of all his glory* 
Some, indeed, hold it out longer than others : and 
the reafcn may be, becaufe nothing remarkable arifes 
from without to try their conftancy, and to bring for- 
ward their real characters to view. But, for the moil 
part, a fnort courie of time (hews what are men's 
principles and motives of conduct.. Enthuiiaftic zea?, 
like inrlammable air, quickly evaporates. The four- 
ces of that pleafure which gives exigence tc a fpuii- 
ous religion, and an equivocal devotion, are foon ex- 
hausted. The imagination tires, the fenfes are palled, 
and the paiTions, for want of novelty and variety to 
keep them alive, fink away into a languid, unfeeling, 
torpid ft ate. Or if the man is ftill the fame reltlefs 
being he ever was, fome new objec~t catches his atten- 
tion, and puts an end to his former connections and 

L purfuks. 

# Primis fegetes moriuntur in herbis : 

Et modo foi nimius, nimius modo corripit imber. 

OVID. 

f Chap. vuL 13, 



X22 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS » 

purfuits. c< His goodnefs, as the morning cloud , and 
the early dew, paffeth away Like a flaming me- 
teor, having a while drawn the attention of all around 
him, he difappears, and vanilhes into eternal oblivion. 
Of him we may fay, in the language of the pfalmift, 
" How is he brought into defolation as in a moment ! 
as a dream when one awaketh, fo, O Lord, when 
thou awaked, thou mall defpife his image f."— But, 
to be a little more particular, 

2. in what manner does he renounce his profef- 
fion ? 

He either filently quits it, or publicly difavows it* 
He is offended \ ftumbles, falls, falls away. He no 
longer maintains and defends the truth, no longer fre- 
quents the houfe of God, no longer affociates with his 
fellow Chriflians, no longer pays any attention to the 
duties of the family or the clofet, if indeed he ever re- 
garded them at all. The name by which he was cal- 
led is obliterated, the place that knew him knows him 
no more, his religious connections are diffolved, from 
the view of thofe with whom he had joined in Chri- 
Hian fellowihip he withdraws, and bidding adieu to all 
that is ferious and good, he mingles with the world, 
enters into their fpirit and views, and in the general 
crowd of vain unthinking men, is forgotten and loft. 

Or elfe, which is fometimes the cafe, he as openly 
and contumelioufly carls off his profeffion, as he had 
haftily and paflionately affumed it. The faith he 
mice fwore to defend with the la ft drop of his blood, 
he now laughs at as an old wife's fable. The people 
with whom he had affociated, he ftigmatizes with the 
name of fools or impoftors, the inftitutions of religion 
he treats with fovereign contempt, the reins, he throws 

on 

* Hcf. vi. 4. i Pfal. Ixxiii. 19, so e 



ENTH'iTSIASTiC HEARERS, 12$ 

0ti the neck of his brutal appetites, (< treads under foot 
the Son of God, counts the blcod of the covenant 
itffiei e^ith he was Sanctified, an unholy thing, and does 
defpite to the Spirit of grace V He falls, and falls 
away fo as not to be recovered again. For M finning 
thus wilfully after he had' received the knowledge of 
the truth, there remaineth no more lacrifice for fins,, 
but a certain fearful looking-for of judgment, and 
fiery indignation, which (hall devour the adversa- 
ries f." 

Kow lamentable a cafe this ! What pious heart car^' 
think of it, without feeling for the honour of religion, 
and trembling for the wi etched apollate ! Ah foolifh, 
unhappy, difingenuous man ! Is this the refult of all 
thy boafted joys, thy framing zeal, thy confident vows, 
thy folemn profeflions ? Thou didft run well, in thine 
own appreheniion, and that of multitudes about thee ' y 
what hath hindered ? Who hath bewitched thee, that 
thou fhouldrt renounce the truth, after having had Je- 
fus Chrift evidently fet forth crucified before thine 
eyes ? Would to God, that our remonftrances, expof- 
tulations, and entreaties, might even yet make Some 
impreflion on thy heart ! But if that is pad feelings 
let however thy bafenefs and perfidy fecure the Sen- 
tence of divine juiti.ee for ever, from the charge of Se- 
verity. — It remains that we now confider, 

IV. The caufe of thefe men's apoftaSy. 

This our Saviour explains with admirable precifion,- 
by teaching us that it is partly owing to the want of 
Something within, eiTentially important to religion, and 
partly to a concurrence of circamftances from without 
unfavourable to the profeflion of it. 

I. Something is wanting within* 

The 

* Heb. x. 29, f Heb. s, %6 t v?, 



X24 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS, 

The parable fays, " The feed forthwith fprung 
becaufe it had no deepnefs of earth " and it wither- 
ed away, becaufe it had no root," as Mark has it * \ 
" and lacked moifture," as it is expreifed in Luke f 0 . 
For want of a Sufficient quantity of earth the feed did 
not fink deep enough into the ground, and through the 
luxuriance of the mould it too quickly diffeminated 
and fprung up. So that having taken root, there was 
no fource whence the tender grafs might be fupplied 
with nourifhment 5 and of confequence it muft necef- 
farily in a little time wither and die. Agreeably 
therefore to the figure, our Lord, in his explanation of 
the parable, fpeaks of thefe hearers as " having no 
root in themfelves." 

And fuch precifely is the cafe of the fort of profef- 
fors we are difcourfmg of. They have no principle of 
teligion in their hearts. Their notions are not proper- 
ly digefted, they do not diffeminate themfelves in the 
mind, take fall hold on the cqnfcience, and incorpo- 
rate, if I may fo exprefs myfelf, with the praftical 
powers of the foul. " The word preached does not 
profit them, not being mixed with faith or, as per- 
haps it might be rendered, becaufe they are not unit- 
ed by faith to the word J. They hear the w T ord, affix 
fome general idea to it, admit it all to be true, with- 
out either confideration or refle&ion, feel a confufed 
tumultuous agitation of the palTions, and fo are inftant- 
ly precipitated into aftion. But their understanding 
is not duly enlightened, their judgment is not rightly 
informed, their confcience is not thoroughly awaken- 
ed, their will not fubdued, nor their affections fan&i- 
fled. In mort, their religion is little elfe than an airy 
phantom, a wild reverie, an idle pafling dream. Now 

this 

* Ch3p, iv. 6. f Chap. viii. 6. J Heb. iv. 2„ 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS a - 22 j 

this being the cafe, is it to be wondered that in a ve- 
ry little time they fall away r — But this fad event is 
owing like wife, 

2. To a concurrence of circurartances from without 
unfavourable to the profeiTion of religion. Thefe, in 
the parable, are all comprehended under the idea of 
the funs fcorcking the fp ringing grafs \ and, in our Sa- 
viour's expoiition of it, are defcribed by the terms tri- 
bulation^ persecution, affliction , and temptation^ all 
which arife btcaufe of the word^ or are occalioned by 
it. 

In the early age, of Chriftianity, it was fcarce poffi- 
ble for a man to profefs the religion of Jefus, without 
expofing himfelf thereby to great temporal inconveni- 
ence and diftrefs. Of this our Saviour frequently- 
warned his difciples, telling them, that if they would 
follow 7 him, they muft be content, for his fake, to part 
with houfes, lands, goods, wives, children, and their 
dearer! enjoyments j yea, that they muft be willing to 
fufFer reproach, imprifonment, and death, And what 
he foretold came to pais; " Through much tribula- 
tion they entered into the kingdom of God And 
this tribulation arofe becaufe of the word. The doc- 
trine of the crofs was to the Jews a ftumbling-block', 
and to the Greeks foolifhnefs j its fimplicity and purl 
ty created an averfion to it, which nothing fliort of a 
divine power could fubdue. So that the implacable 
refentments of the former urged them to every pofli- 
ble exertion, in order to extirpate the Chriftian name ^ 
and, the infufferable pride of the latter, begat in their 
breafts a fovereign contempt for all who affumed it* 
Wherefore, the profeffcrs of this new religion, as it 
was called, were fare to meet with more or lefs cblo- 

L 3 <l ll 7 
* Acts xiv, az» , 



Jl6 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 

quy and perfecution. And fuch treatment, not failing 
to bring their fincerity and conftancy to the teft, foon 
produced a revolution in thofe, whofe profeffion had 
nothing to rapport it, but a mere pafTion for novelty. 
Their confeffions and vows, fair and promiflng as they 
might feem, quickly withered beneath the feorching 
beams of perfecution. 

The like event hath happened in regard of an infi- 
nite number of pretended Chriftians fince thofe times. 
And few, even of thofe whofe enthufiafm has rifen to 
the highefl pitch, have had firmnefs enough, merely 
for the fake of acquiring a fplendid name, to renounce 
all that was dear to them in this world. But the pro- 
feflion of the gofpel now flourifhes under the mild au- 
fpices of liberty, and men may avow their religious 
principles, not only without danger of being called to 
account by the magiftrate, but with little hazard of 
differing any material reproach and abufe from their 
neighbours. Yet, fafhionable as it may be, in fome 
periods and countries, to aiTume the appearance of re- 
ligion, it is ftill true, that he who will live godly in 
(Shrift Jefus, muft fuffer perfecution. A firm attach- 
ment to the fimplicity of divine truth, and a confcien- 
tious obfervance of its precepts, will, efpecially under 
certain circumitances, expofe a man to the ill-natur- 
ed cenfures of fome, and the cold fhy indifference of 
others. 

Now, whatever the affliction or temptation may be, 
which arifes becaufe of the w r ord, the mere nominal 
' profelfor, who has not ballad enough in himfelf to 
keep him fready, will be quickly overpowered, funk, 
and deftroyed. Inftances of this fort, are too nume- 
rous to be particularly recited. How often has the 
fneer of a profane acquaintance, a trifling affront from 

3 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARER'S. 12>J 

a fellow- Chriiiian, or a fudden refinance to a mere 
fancy or humour, become the cceafion of a man's rend- 
ing himfelf from his religious connexions, and, in the 
end, totally renouncing his profeffion ! Puifed up with 
piide and conceit, and unprincipled by the grace of 
God, he Humbles at every ftone or pivot he meets,, 
till at length he falls, and falls to rife no more again > 
And if little offences (hall produce this effect, it is net 
to be thought ftrange, that the mighty florms of adver- 
fity, arifing now from this, and then from that quarter, 
mould dafh to pieces the (hallow bark of an empty 
profeffion, on the rock of infidelity } or that the briik 
gales of profperity mould fink in the quickfands of 
worldly diffipation and pleafure. 

Examples of fuch miferable apoftates, there are ma- 
ny : We will inftance only a few during our Saviour's 
perfonal miniftry here on earth, and a little after his 
afcenfion into heaven. There was an occafion on which 
he benevolently fed five thoufand people, with a few 
barley loaves and fifties. The fplendour of this mira- 
cle fo fenfibly ftruck the paffions of the multitude, 
that, in an ecftacy of admiration and wonder, they 
cried out, " This furely is the Meffiah, the prophet 
" that mould come. Let us take him by force and 
" make him a king." Thus inftantly and loudly do 
they prcfefs their faith in Chrift \ nor would they have 
hefitated a moment, to pronounce the fevereft cenfure 
upon any one of their number, who fhould have dif- 
fented from the propofal. But no moral change ha- 
ving paned on their hearts, what is the refult ? The 
next temptation that arifes, fhakes their faith in Chrift, 
dhTolves their attachment to him, and puts an "end to 
their profeffion. * On the morrow, piqued at our Lord's 
freedom in reproving them for their worldlinefs, and 

offended 



128 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS, 



offended at tlie purity and fublimity of his doctrine | 
they murmur at him, complain of his layings as hard 
and unintelligible, deny that he came down from hea- 
ven, and, in a word, go back and walk no more with 
him *. 

Of the fame character were the men of Nazareth* 
When our Lord entered their fynagogue, and difcour- 
fsd to them upon a paffage from the Gld Teftament * 7 
they fafiened their eyes upon him, bore witnefs to 
what he faid. and wondered at the gracious words 
which proceeded out of his mouth. They were all 
attention, and feeraed deeply affected with his mild 
and perfuafive reafoning. But alas ! the fcene is foon 
changed* They urge him to work a miracle among 
them. He refufes to gratify their curiofity, represent- 
ing to them their real character, which was like that 
of their perverfe and iniquitous anceitors. Upon 
which, filled with wrath, they feise him, lead him to 
the brow of the hill on which their city w ? as built, and 
would have carl: him headlong from thence, had he 
not paffed through the midft of them and fo efcaped f . 

No lefs extraordinary w r as the wretched enthunafm- 
of the people at Jerufalem %. One day we fee them 
leading our Saviour in triumph into the city, crying ? 
44 Hofanna to the Son of David, bleffed is he that co- 
44 meth in the name of the Lord !" and the next, at 
the perfuafion of the chief priefts and elders, with un- 
exampled cruelty, demanding of Pilate his crucifixion, 
Who could have fuppofed a change fo marvellous, 
mould take place in fo fnort a time ? The truth is 9 
the real character of the people was the fame the one 
day as the other - 7 but objects firiking their imagina- 
tion 

* Johnvi. f Luke iv. 1 5.— 30. \ Mat. xxi. x.— zi» 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS, Xlfy 

don now, differently from what they did then, thefe 
very extraordinary effects enfued. 

In fine, the Laodiceans, at leaft many of them, were 
notorioufly of the character we have been defcribing* 
It is not to be doubted, when the gofpel was firft 
preached among them, they received it with joy. The 
ground was ftony, but having a little earth upon it, 
the feed met with a favourable reception. It forth- 
with fprungup, and produced ayerdure pleafmg to the 
eye, and likely to be followed with a fair harveih 
But alas ! having no root, and the fun of worldly prof- 
perity arifing upon it, it quickly withered. It is eafy 
to imagine the rapturous pleafure thefe people felt, at 
the firft hearing of this new and marvellous doftrine y 
and probably for a time it continued, and they brought 
forth fome fruits anfwerable to it. But it was not 
long ere they relapfed into their former Hate. Their 
hearts not being eftabliftied with grace, and the world 
with its flattering pleafures wantonly carefling them \ 
their joy declined, their zeal abated, and they became 
neither cold nor hot. What a ftrange reverfe ! How 
is the gold become dim, and the fine gold changed I 
u Thou fayeft," fuch is the language of him who fearch- 
ed their hearts^ " I am rich, and increafed with goods, 
and have need of nothing j and knoweft not, that thou 
art wretched and miferable, and poor, and blind, and 
naked*." 

Nor are characters of this defcription confined to 
the firft age of Chriftianity ) they have exlfted in eve- 
ry age and place, where the gofpel has been preached 
fince that time \ in Romifh and reformed churches, in 
this and other countries, in the eftablilhment and among 
dilrenters. Indeed enthufiafm is not to be confidered 

as 

* Pv£\r, Hi. 1 6, 17. 



f Jtf ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS'. 

as the offspring of religion, or as peculiar to the reli- 
gious of any denomination. It is the refult of a par- 
ticular call of mind, or temperature of animal fpirits y 
and to be met with among men of all profeiTions of 
life. Nor is it, when held under feafonable reftraints^ 
without its ufe to fociety. The exceihve ardour, for 
inllance, of a brave general, has, on certain occaiions f 
produced efforts, which, though fcarcely reconcileable 
with military ikill, have been followed with the molt 
beneficial confequences. And if Chriitians, whofe re- 
ligion holds up to their view, the grande ft objects and 
the moil animating profpec~ts, are fometimes transport- 
ed almoft beyond themfelves j it ought not to be 
thought ftrange : nor will any evil accrue from it, but 
on the contrary, much good, both to themfelves and * 
others. But when one of an unprincipled heart af- 
fumes, under the influence of a heated imagination^ 
the character of a man of religion \ every wild and 
dangerous extravagance is to be apprehended, nor can 
there remain a doubt, that the event of his profeflion 
will be fuch as has been reprefented. Religion, howe- 
ver, is not to be blamed for thefe evils, of which it is no 
way the caufe, though it may be the occafion y they 
are to be fet down to the account of a fatal, but too 
frequent combination of a depraved heart, with an im- 
petuous natural temper. 

Thus have we confidered our Saviour's finking de- 
fcription of the fecond clafs of hearers, namely, the 
enthusiastic — their character previous to their hear- 
ing the word — the effect it inftantlv produces on their 
minds — their apoftafy — and the caufes of it. It re- 
mains that we now make a few reflections. 

i. What a finking picture has our Saviour here 
given us of human nature I 

The 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. IZt 

The character of enthufiaftic hearers is drawn k 
our text to trie life, with the greater!: simplicity, and 
free from ail art or colouring ; and it has, been reali- 
zed, as was juil obferved, in inftances without num- 
ber. Every age and country where the gofpel has 
been preached, have fumifhed examples of perfons 
who have treated it in the manner here defcribed. 
And how natural to conclude from hence, that Jefus 
of Nazareth was a teacher that came from God ! He 
taught with authority, not as the fcribes. He had an 
exact and compreheniive knowledge of all men, and of 
all things. 66 He needed not that any mould teftify 
of man : for he knew what was in man How de- 

voutly mould we revere his infinite wifdom and pene- 
tration ! how diligently lilt en to his inftructions ; 
and how implicitly confide in his word and promifes ! 
And fince he has thus exactly foretold what treat- 
ment his gofpel would meet with in the world, how 
mould this ccnfideration fortify the minds of his faith- 
ful minifters, amidft all the difcouragements they meet 
with from this quarter ! Ee it fo that enthufiafm, as 
well as infidelity, erects its ftandard againft the gofpel 
wherever it comes, our divine Mafter has told us that 
fo it would be \ we have therefore no reafon to be 
-unduly call down at an appearance fo fad and unplea- 
ring. 

2, Of what importance is it to fkidy ourfelves, and 
to keep a guard upon our pafhons ! 

Men differ, as we have feen, from one another in 
regard of their animal frame, as well as their moral 
difpofition j and the former has no fmall influence, 
though not in fo great a degree as the latter, on their 
speculations and feelings about matters of religion* 

To 

* John ii. 25. 



$32 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 

To know therefore what is our natural cafe, what the 
temperature of our animal fpirits, how we are apt to 
be affe&ed with external objects, whether we are live- 
ly or phlegmatic, gay or gloomy, cheerful or fevere * y 
to know this, I fay, is a matter of great confequence. 
For hereby we_ mail be fecured from miftaking our 
own proper character, and pronouncing too haftily 
either for or againft ourfelves. Some truly pious 
Chriftians have been apt to conclude from thofe pain- 
ful feelings, which are the mere eiTecl: of natural con- 
flitution, that they are utter ftrangers to the grace of 
God j while others, on the mere ground of their live- 
ly and elevated feelings, have as confidently infilled 
that they are Chriftians, and Chriftians too of a fupe- 
rior rank. In the former cafe, the miftake is not a 
little prejudicial to a man's prefent comfort \ in the 
latter, it is effentially dangerous to his everlafting in- 
terefl. 

Let us therefore fludy ourfelves. It is manly to 
wifh to know what our real character is. Self-know- 
ledge will have an important influence on our general 
conduct. It will prevent many folecifms in our daily 
deportment, both as men and Chriftians. It will put 
us upon our guard againft the arts of designing infidels, 
and the miferable delufions of enthuftafm. And it 
will anift us in our attention to thofe duties, which are 
wifely and gracioufly appointed for our furtherance ia 
the divine life. 

3. We fee what kind of preaching is to be coveted, 
and what avoided. 

Improvement in fubftantial knowledge and real 
holinefs, will be the grand .object with every wife 
man : to this he will r&adily facrifice imagination and 
paffion. Thefe indeed are not to be treated with ne- 

glea. 



ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. f%$ 

gle£t. A dull, heavy, lifelefs difcourfe, whatever ufe~ 
ful inftruction it may contain, will have little effect, 
A man who wiihes to perfiiade ought no doubt, to ieel 
his fubjeft, and religious lubjects are of all others the 
mod fublime and animating. But if all the preacher'* 
aim is to amufe the fancy of his audience, without in- 
forming their judgment, and to route their gajfion^ 
without getting at their hearts, little good is to be ex- 
pected from hi: moil ingenuous effays, or his moll: 
ilrenuous exertions. 

Religion is a ferious thing, and fo miferably igno- 
rant and perverfe are the generality of hearers, that 
they need be clofely reafoned, and faithfully dealt with 
upon this moil important matter. What profpecl: is 
there then of a finner's being converted to God by 
rhetorical ficuriihes, well-turned periods, or an artful 
laboured difplay of fplendid abilities ! And how much 
lefs profpecl of his becoming either wife or good by 
the violent impulfe of loud vociferation, unmeaning 
tones, and frantic geitures ! Will the exciting an ig- 
norant hearer's wonder by a few empty jejune criti- 
cifms, convince him of the evil of fin, and his danger 
of fullering the wrath of Almighty God ? Will the 
playing upon his imagination with a plenty of ill-ma- 
naged tropes and figures, and a fuccelTion of idle |rift 
ling flories, perfuade him to break off his vices, and 
become a found fubftantial Chriftian ? Will the gri- 
mace of a diftorted countenance, the thunder of an 
unnaturally elevated voice, or the terror of uplifted 
hands, compel him to rank among the followers of the 
Lamb ? Ah ! no. Effects indeed, and very impor- 
tant ones, have been produced by thefe expedients j 
but alas ! they are fuch as have rather injured than 
M ferved 



«34 -ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS, 

ferved the real interefts of mankind. This lias furE- 
ciently appeared from the preceding difcourfe. 

Let us, therefore, if we would rightly underftand 
the word of the kingdom, and be favingly benefited 
by it, choofe thofe for our inuruclors who clearly 
ft ate it, ably defend it, and with all the ferioufnefs, 
affection, and earneftnefs, which its-infinite importance 
demands, addrefs our hearts and confciences upon it. 
It is not wild enthufiafm, but a divine faith, that muft 
bring us to heaven. 

4. Our Lord, by the inftru£lIon given us in our 
text, has enabled us to reply to an objection often ur- 
ged againft the dofhine of the faints final perfeve- 
rance. 

We are frequently reminded of perfons whofe pro- 
feffion for a time was fair and fplendid, but who in the 
- end renounced it. And no doubt this has been the 
faft in too many fad inftances. But what does it 
prove ? No more than that thefe men were either de- 
signing hypocrites, or elfe haftily took upon them a 
profeflion of what they did not rightly underftand, 
truly believe, and cordially approve. And will any 
one fay that the event of fuch a profeflion is at all to 
be wondered at ? or that it does in the leaft clafh with 
the affurances our Saviour has given us, of his atten- 
tion to the final interefts of his faithful people ? It 
might naturally be expecled that the man who received 
the word in the manner the text defcribes, mould by 
and bye be oftended. No real change had ever paffed 
on his heart, no living principle of religion was ever 
implanted in his breaft, and no promife was ever given 
him of fuch fupport and afiiftance, as fliould fecure 
him from apoftafy in the hour of temptation and dan- 
ger. 



TNTHUSIASTIC HEARER. 1^5 

But where tLe underftanding has been duly enlight- 
ened, and the heart really impregnated with a princi- 
ple of religion, as it is not likely that what is in 3 
manner interwoven with a man's nature mould be ea- 
fily parted with > fo like wife the Scriptures affure us y 
that divine grace will watch over k T defend, cheriih 7 
and bring it to perfection. The former idea is autho- 
rif^d by our Lord's commendation of " the w 7 ater of 
life," in his difcourfe with the woman of Samaria : it 
mall be, fays he, in him to whom I give it, " a well 
of water fpringing up into everlafting life And 
the latter idea, I mean the attention which the bleffed 
God pays to this vital principle of religion in the* 
hearts of his people, is ftrikingly expreffed by our Sa- 
viour in thofe remarkable words j- : " I give unto 
them eternal life, and they {hall never perifh, neither 
(hall any man pluck them out of my hand : and no- 
man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand." 
—Once more, 

5. And laftly, Let not the mournful fubjecl: we 
have been confidering, create any difcouragement in 
the bread of the truly humble but weak Chriftian. 

Methinks I hear him, in the fadnefs of his heart, 
fay, " I have received the word, and, as I thought, 
" with joy. But w r hat if my joy mould prove a mere 
M illuuon of the fancy ? And what if my profefTion 
6i mould ifTue in apcitafy r" This, be allured, Chri- 
ftian, and 1 think 1 fpeak upon the authority of Scrip- 
tare/ will not be the cafe, Recollecl: what has been 
fa id re fpe cling the temper of your mind previous to 
the comfort you enjoyed, the coniiderations that exci- 
,.-1 „„j e ff e £^ s fa produced. 
' You was in earneit auuuv ^ e , ^ c r , 

* J<»^« f John K t ^8, 



Z$6 ENTHUSIASTIC HEARERS. 

You clearly faw you had offended God, and loft his 
image , that you were in danger of fuffering his wrath, 
and that there was no help in you. What relieved 
you of your fear was a firm perfuanon, upon the tefti- 
mony cf Scripture, that God is merciful, for Chrift's 
fake, to the chiefeft of finners* On the merit of this 
divine Saviour you wholly repofed yourfelf for pardon ? 
juftification,. and eternal life. So you was humbled 
before God, under a fenfe cf your own vilenefs $ you 
regretted the offences you had committed againft him ; 
you felt your obligations to his mercy ) you refolved 
upon taking the proper meafures for mortifying your 
luffs, and rending temptation ). and though you have 
not yet attained, nor are yet perfect, it is however 
your daily concern to avoid fin, and to pleafe God. 

And now, I afk, is there not a clear diftinclion be- 
tween your ch.aracr.er, and the characters of the felf- 
deceiving hypocrite, and the wild enthufiaft ? Why 
then ftiould you be thus caff down ? Put your truft in 
God. Go on, diligently hearing the word of the 
kingdom, comforting yourfelf with its many gracious 
promifes, che riming in your breaff its divine temper^ 
and pracHfing its facred precepts. So you may reft 
affured the event will be to your infinite joy. " God 
is faithful who has promifed." 



DISCOURSE IV. 



THE CHARACTER OF WORLDLY-MINDED 
HEARERS CONSIDERED, 



Mat. xiii, 7. 

Jhtd feme- fell among thorns ; and the thorns fprung 
up and choaked them. 

THE characters of the two firft claffes of hear- 
ers having been coniidered, we proceed now to 
that of the 

THIRD, The -worldly-minded. Thefe are de» 
fcribed in our text. u Some feeds fell among thorns \ 
and the thorns fprung up and choaked them.' 1 

The foil in the hedge or inclofure, round about the 
field, is ufually richer and deeper, and fa more favour- 
able for cultivation, than the ground on the way-fide^ 
or in ftony places. Wherefore the feed which acci- 
dentally falls here will be likely after a time, to take 
root : nor is it liable to be trod on, or inftantly fcorch- 
ed with heat. But then, unhappily the thorns, which, 
through the luxuriance of the foil, grow here in abun» 
dance r fpring up with it, and crowding about it, keep 
off the fun and the air : fo its growth is checked, and 
of confequence, it brings no fruit to perfection, but in 
a courfe of time, it is choaked and deftroyed* 

M 3 Such 



XjS WO?XELY-MINDED HEARERS. 

Such is the figure our Lord adopts, to defcribe the 
effects which the word produces on their minds, who 3 
arnidft ail their pretentions to religion, are yet men of 
the world, and bring not forth fuch fruit as might rea- 
sonably be expecled from their profeffion. His expo- 
iition of this part of the parable you have in the twen- 
ty-fecond verfe : " He alfo that received feed among 
the thorns, is he that heareth the word \ and the care 
of this world, and the deeeitfulnefs of riches, choak the 
word, and he becameth unfruitful."— Here you will 
; obferve, 

i. The treatment the word meets with from thefe 
perfons.- — They hear it, and receive it. 

Thefe terms have been already explained, and are 
here to be understood, as in the former cafe, of affix- 
ing fome idea to the gofpel, giving a general affent to 
its truth, and profefling it. But fome difference is to 
v be remarked, even in regard of thefe particulars, be- 
, tween the fort of perfons considered in the former di£« 
courfe, and thofe we are now treating of. The enthu- 
,ul, if not literally fpeaking under the influence of 
mere found, yet hears with fuch an eager, rapid kind 
of levity, that his notions of religion are a perfect 
chaos of wild ideas without either order or conriftency, 
The tranlition, too, he makes from his firft hearing the 
word to his believing and profeffing it, is almoft inftan- 
tarieous ^ and in the whole bufinefs, he appears to be 
deeply intereiled in what he is about. But the cafe is 
perhaps otherwife here. The man hears, and goes on 
to hear, till at length he collecls a tolerably conMent 
notion of the gofpel. But though, like the other, he 
admits it all to be true, without feeling himfelf embar- 
raffed with doubts \ yet he difcovers little of that zeal ? 
which fo ftrongly marks the character of the enthufiarT 0 

After, 



WORLDLY -MINDED HEARER? j 



*39 



After a while, however, he makes a public profemon \ 
and this done in the ordinary way, and without any 
fnew or parade, he is comidered as a fober, fedate 
Chriftian.- Yea, more than this, having profelTed the 
word, he brings forth fome fruit ; for this is evi- 
dently implied in the phrafe ufed by Luke * } ©f his 
•* bringing no fruit to perfection." His conduct, is in 
the general decent and refpectable. — Now, this be- 
ing the manner of his receiving the word, you will ob- 
ferve, 

2. How its falutary operation on his heart - is ob- 
ftru&ed and defeated. — He goes forth, fays Luke f , 
that is, mingles with the world, becomes more inti- 
mately connected with the bufineffes and amufements 
of life than he has occanon, and fo by degrees, is con- 
formed to the fpirit, manners, and conduct of the vain 
part of mankind J. " The cares of this world, and 
the deceitfulnefs of riches, and the lulls of other 
things ||," or, " the pleafures of life," as Luke has 
it J, rt enter in," that is, into his heart. They feize 
his attention, exercife his thoughts, take up his time^ 
and engrofs his affections. — And what, 

3. Is the event r*— Thefe Thorns choah the word. 
Its natural and proper operation on his judgment, 

confcience and paffions is obftrucled \ and, after a tirne ? 
the impreffions it had made are wholly effaced, and the 

very 

* Chap. viii. 14. f Ibid. 

% Perh2ps Tn^evQuivM may be intended to convey an idea of 
continued action, as in our Lord's words to the apoftles, Matt.x. 
7. z-opivouivot migvwfTe, as ye go, preach. And in that cafe, a 
very Important circumftance in the conduct of thefe hearers, is 
held up to view, namely, their going on in a confiant round of 
hearing the word, and purfuing the world. 

H Mark iv. 19. 1 § Chap. viii. 14, 



f 4° • WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 

very remembrance of it loft. So be becomes unfruit- 
ful. None of the amiable graces of humility, meek- 
nefs, temperance, limplicity, and benevolence, adorn 
his profeiTion. He is not, indeed, as yet, ftriclly fpeak^ 
ing, an apaftate, but maintains a general character for 
fobriety, juftice, and decency. It is neve^thelefs true 
of him, that he brings no fruit to perfe&ion. There 
as fruit, but it fcarce deferves the name of fruit, not ha- 
ving arrived at its proper growth, ripened kindly, or 
got its true flavour. The duties of piety and devotion, 
are reluctantly, irregularly, and carelefsly performed \ 
thofe of Chriilian friendfhip and love, are little attend- 
ed to \ and thofe of mortification- and felf-denial, are 
almoft wholly overlooked and forgotten. And what 
is the final iffue ? He is hint ft If choaked as well as the 
word, (for fo Luke defcribes it *,) with cares, riches, 
and the pleafures of this life* He dies, perifhes, is loft 
for ever. 

Thus, you have a general comment upon, this part 
of the parable, and upon our Saviour's- expofition of 
it. And now, it will be neceffary to coniider more 
particularly, 

I. What thofe things are ? which prevent the faluta- 
ry effecl: of God's word upon that clafs of hearers we 
are here difcourfing of } 

II. How they operate to that end } and, 

III. The fad event of all. 

I. Let us confider what thofe things are, which ob- 
ftrucT: the due operation of God's word on the hearts 
of thefe men. Our Lord mentions three— careis— 
riches — pleafures. 

FIRST, The cares of the world* 

By the cares of the world^ht means undue and cri- 
minal 

* Chap, viii, 14* 



W0R-LDXY-MINDE2) HEARERS, 

tninal anxieties about fecular concerns. Now, as it is 
allowed on all hands, that worldly cares are not to be 
wholly reprobated } in order to our clearly mewing 
how far they are 7 or are not iinful, we will confider 
them in reference to a threefold view of a man-s tem- 
poral mttxe&s—fubfijtence — competence — affluence* 

By fubfijlence, we mean the neceffaries of life, what 
a man cannot do without, fuch as food, raiment, and 
habitation. To wifh for thefe, to take proper mea* 
fures to obtain them, and when we have them to en- 
joy them,, cannot be wrong. " Your Father," fays 
our Saviour, " knoweth that ye have need of thefe 
things Indifference to them, if that were poffible, 
would be criminal, and of confequence, the not ufing 
proper endeavours to procure them, would be criminal 
alfo. No pretence of abftra&ednefs from the world^ 
and elevation of heart to heaven, will juftify indolence* 
But then, on the contrary, fuch a care about even the 
necelfaries of life, as involves in it diftruft of the pro- 
vidence of God, and drives a man aimoft to diftrae- 
tion \ fuch a care, as occupies all his thoughts and 
time, and renders him incompetent to the duties of re- 
ligion and fuch a care, which is worfe, as precipitates 
him, through indulgence and f!oth,ii:to difhoneft mea- 
fures to obtain a livelihood, is very finful and deplora- 
ble indeed. This mull ftrike every one at firft view, 
and therefore requires no further illuftraticn here, in 
order to prove it, which is all our oBjeQ at prefent. 

Competence is a relative term, and has refpecl to ca- 
pacity and defire. Such a proportion of the world, as 
is fulted to our eaparit-y 7 that to our character and 
nation in life, is a real competence \ but fuch as is 
fuited to delires not regulated by reafon and ieligion,. 

is 



-2-4 s W0RLDLY-MINDE25 HEARERS 

is an equivocal competence. As to the latter, all care' 
about it is criminal. But as to the former, a real 
competence, we do not fin when we wifh to poffefs it; 
We are only wiming for fo-much property as the ha- 
bits of life, acquired by education and the rank we 
hold in fociety, do in a fenfe make neceffary $ and 
furely that cannot be wrong. A prince requires more 
for his fupport than aTubjeft, and a man in a middling 
fl-ation than a peafant. Deli res, cares, and exertions^ 
therefore, directed to this object, are not only allowa- 
ble, but commendable. But, even though the objecl 
may be right, our care about it may exceed - y which 
is the cafe r when it fo entangles our minds, oppreffes 
our fpirits, and-engrofles our time, as to make us un* 
happy, and unfit us for the duties we owe to God and 
our fellow-creatures, In this cafe, we are no doubt 
to be blamed, and ought to ufe our utmoll endeavours 
to correct fo threatening an evil. — Once more, 

Affluence, or fuch an abundance of the world as goes: 
beyond fubfiftence and competence, is alfo a defireable 
good. Wherefore the taking prudent, boneft, and 
temperate meafures to acquire w 7 ealth, to the end our 
lives may be rendered more comfortable, and we may 
have it in our power to minlfler to the neceffities of 
others, is not to be cenfured* But if our objecl: is; 
the. gratifying our pride and other .vain, frivolous 
paflions, our painful labours, however they may ai- 
fume the- Tpecious character of prudent induftry, muffc 
needs be orfenfive to God, and injurious to our be ft 
intere&s. 

If men will at all events be rich, not regarding the 
will of providence, or reflecting that riches arc ufiv** 
anoccafion of great folly and fin J if they will fet their 
hearts on the world, and put out all their lirength in 

purfuk 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 143 

jmrfult of k, lofing light of God, their fouls, and a fu- 
ture ftate j the cares and anxieties that follow, will 
bring a tremendous load of guilt upon their conferences, 
pierce them through with many forrows, and, like 
thorns and briers, ftifle in their breads every worthy, 
generous, and religious fentiment. — So much, then $ 
may fufBce for explaining what is meant by the cares 
of the wor/d, and to (hew how far they are, or are not 
finful. Their operation to obftrucl the progrefs of re- 
ligion in the heart, will come to be conlidered hereaf- 
ter. We go on now, 

SECONDLY, To the deceitfulnefs of riches, the 
next thing our Saviour mentions. 

His meaning is, that men are prone to reafon mif- 
takenly about riches 3 and the mode of fpeech he adopts, 
more flrongly and elegantly marks the idea, than if he 
had fo exprefled himfelf *. Riches are. in a fenfe, 
tkemfelves deceitful. They allume an appearance 
different from their real nature and ufe, and fo, the 
unwary obferver is miferably impofed upon. Our bu- 
finefs then, will be to conflder the falfe reafonings of a 
depraved heart in reference to — wealth itfelf—the 
mode of acquiring it — and the term of enjoying it. 

In As to wealth itfe/f men reafon very miftakenly 
about it. 

To treat riches with abfolute contempt, as fome af- 
fect to do, is againft all fenfe and reafon. They are 
the gift of God, and when applied to their proper ufe 
ate a great blefiing. They will procure the neceffa- 
ries and accommodations of life, and enable us, if we 
have hearts, to do a great deal of good. But alas ! fo 
befotted are mankind, they fuppofe wealth hath an in- 
trinlic excellence in it which it really hath not. A 

diamond^ 



144 WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS, 

diamond, it is true, is more precious than a pebble, 
and gold than a clod of earth. But compare either of 
them with true wifdom, and the exalted pleafures of 
religion, and how mean and trirling do they appear ! 

The value of riches is chiefly to be eftimated by 
their ufe. But even here men greatly miitake it. 
Money will purchafe a man delicate food, gorgeous 
apparel, ftately manfions, fplendid furniture, power, 
and fome kind of refpect from his fellow-creatures. 
But will it fet him beyond the reach of ficknefs, pain, 
difappointment, vexation, and contempt ? Or if he ef- 
eapes thefe evils, can his wealth give him peace of 
mind, x and fully fatisfy the large defires of his heart r 
Will it make him completely and fubflantially happy ? 
No. It is evident from the nature of the thing, and 
from the united teitimony of all, fooner or later* that 
it vnU. not. And yet fo foolifn, fo mad are the gene- 
rality of mankind, that they reafon and a6l as if they 
thought it would. With what eager- deiire, expecta- 
tion, and confidence, do they look at thefe objects of 
fenfe ! And how do thefe. babbles (for fo I call them 
as compared with intellectual and divine pleafures) 
dazzle their eyes, confound their reafon, pervert their 
eonfciences, fet all their paffions on fire, and precipi- 
tate them, at the hazard of their everlalting intererls, 
into practices the moft fraudulent,' cruel, and oppief- 
live ! — V/hich leads me to obferve further, that in re- 
gard, 

2. Of the mode of acquiring wealth men reafon very 
miftakenly. 

Wealth does not fall to the lot of all, and the 
afcent from a low ftation to that of opulence and ho- 
nour, is ufually flow, fteep, and flippery. But multi- 
tudes^ at the very fetting off, miftake it. Their eager 

defire 



YTORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS, I'4^ 

defire of fuccefs is by falfe reafoning converted into 
ailurance of it. They will be rich, and their imagi- 
nation inftantly realizing the object, the meafures that 
mould be taken to fecure it are deranged by precipi- 
tancy. Induftry, integrity, prudence and opportuni- 
ty, have a great influence on worldly profperity, but 
above all the fmiles of Providence 

In regard of the firft of thefe there is perhaps no 
failure here : they exert every nerve, compafs fea and 
land to gain their point. But truth and prcfcty, or 
at leaft franknefs and generofity, Handing in their way f 
thefe mud be thruft alide : fo they mifs their end, for- 
getting that honefty is the bed policy. Or if con- 
fcience is not thus in the beginning laid afleep, the 
plans they frame, for want of coolnefs and confidera= 
tion, are not properly digefteci, or warily purfued, 
and fo they fail. Or if this is not the cafe, opportu- 
nity — the favourable moment for carrying a purpoie 
into execution — is miffed. And then providence is 
overlooked ; their immoderate love of the world, 
which is their idol, {huts God out of their thoughts j 
or, if they do at all advert to that influence on which 
the fuccefs of their endeavours depends, their reafon- 
ing upon it is effentially wrong. So God tsjuftly pro- 
voked to blaft their fchemes, or to puniih them yet 
more ienfibly, by converting the fuccefs he permits 
them to meet with into a curfe, and fo making their 
riches their ruin. " He that trufteth," fays Solomon, 
" in his riches, (hall fall *." And " they- that will 
be rich," fays the apoftle, " fall into temptation, and 
a fnare, and into many foolifh and hurtful lufts, which 
drown men in deftru&ion and perdition. For the love 
of money is the root of all evil, which while feme co- 
N veted 
* Prov. xi. 38. 



X$6 "WORL D L l r - M I N D ED HEARERS. 

veted after, they have erred from the faith, and pier- 
ced themfelves through with many forrows — Once 
snore, 

3. Men reafon deceitfully concerning the term cf 
tnjoying the wealth they acquired 

From their vehement paflion for riches,- and the pro- 
digious e^cpence they are at to procure them, it is evi- 
dent they conceive highly tdth of the greatnefs and 
the continuance of that enjoyment they expect. For 
who would put out all his itrength, and endanger his 
happinefs in another world, for a thing of naught, 
and which he knew would be no fooner got than loft i 
But men are deceived in both thefe particulars. As 
to the firft, it has been already (hewn, that it is not in 
the nature of wealth to fatisfy the vaft delires of the 
foul : let a man therefore polfefs ever fo large an abun- 
dance of it, there will Hill remain a vacuity in his 
mind, and of confequence his riches cannot make hira 
completely happy. 

But fuppofe his idea of worldly enjoyment to be mo- 
derate, and within the bounds of reafon, even of fuch 
enjoyment he may be disappointed. Few who have 
compaffed their object, and acquired the exact portion 
of wealth they had marked out to themfelves, have 
found that comfort refulting from it, which they na- 
turally enough expected. The fruition hath been al- 
layed by a variety of unforefeen circumftances, if not 
wholly defeated by bodily diforders, or troubles of a 
.kind that riches cannot prevent or footh. 

But admitting full further, that the enjoyment ex- 
actly anfwers his expectation, yet how fhort is the 
term of poffeflion ! Very quickly, perhaps upon his 
tailing the fweets of affluence, he is deprived of it. 

By 

* i Tim. vi. p, 10, 



WORLDLY -MINDED HEARERS. 147 

B-v- fraud, or force, or fome other calamity, he is call 
down from the eminence he had taken fuch pains to 
reach, into an abyis of poverty and wretchednefs.- 
« Charge them," fays the apoftie, 14 that are rich in 
this world, not to trull in uncertain riches *." Or if 
no fuch accident befals him; yet while he is promifmg 
himfelf many years enjoyment of his wealth, death i$ 
preparing to turn him out of poffeiTion, 

This has fometimes happened, and our Lord men- 
tions it, in one of his parables, with a view to illuftrate 
this very point of the deceitfulnefs of riches. " The 
ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. 
And he thought within himfelf, faying, What mail I 
do, becaufe I have no room where to beftow my fruits ? 
And he faid, This will I do, I will pull down my 
barns and build greater, and there will 1 beftow my 
fruits, and my goods. And I will fay to my foul, 
Soul, thou haft much goods laid up for many years, 
take thine eafe, eat, drink, and be merry. But God 
faid unto him, Thou fool, this night thy foul fhall be 
required of thee : then whofe fhall thofe things be 
which thou haft provided f ?" Could any one reafon 
more miftakenly about riches than this unhappy man 
did ? And how juftly did he merit the character of a 
fool, which our Lord gives him ! The number of fuch 
fools is not fmall : for though the like event may not 
have happened to the greater part of the rich, yet it is 
too evident that the majority look forward to futurity 
with the fame fanguyie expectations this man did. 

Eut fuppofe there are perfons, here and there, who 
hold flie peaceable poffefiion of their w T ealth, with a 
reliih for all the comforts it can procure them, for 
Uventy or thirty years ) how ihort is the term ! And 

will 

* i Tisi. vi. 17. f Luke xii. 16, — 20. 



I48 WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 

will a man of fenfe fay, that a few inftances of fills 
fort will juftify the w 7 ild reafonings, and confident 
hopes of him, who fets out on the rapid career of ac- 
cumulating wealth at the ex-pence of eafe and healthy 
ii not of conference ? Certainly not* How great then 
is u the deceitfulnefs of riches !" — It remains now to 
confider the third and laft thing our Saviour mentions, 
as an obftruftion to the due operation of God's word 
on the heart, and that is, , 

THIRDLY, The pleafure* of this life, or, as Mark 
expreffes it, " the lufts of other things." 

Here we need not be very particular, for as riches 
are the means of procuring pleafures, and moft gene- 
rally coveted with that view, the fame folly and cri- 
minality we have charged to the account of the ava- 
ricious, is, with a little variation of circumflances, ta 
be imputed likewife to the fenfualift. Pleafure in- 
deed abftra£ledly considered is a real good y the deflre 
of it is congenial with our nature, and cannot be eradi- n 
cated without the deftruftion of our very exiftence, 
This is not therefore what our Lord condemns. Ha 
well knew that there are paflions and appetites proper 
to men as men, that the moderate gratification of them 
is necelfary to their happinefs, and of confequence that 
the defire of fuch gratification is not finful. But the 
pleafure he prohibits is that which refults from the 
indulgence of irregular defires, I mean fuch as are di- 
rected to wrong objects, and fuch as are exceflive m 
their degree. 

With refpeft to the former, men are univerfally 
agreed that they are criminal ; offenfive^ to God, in- 
jurious to fociety, and deftru&ive to him who indulges 
them. The murderer, adulterer, and others that might 
* be mentioned,, we behold with abhorrence. But it is 

the 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 1 49 

the latter kind of pleafures -our Saviour has here chief- 
ly in view, thofe which are in themfelves innocent, but 
become criminal by excefs. And it is from this quar- 
ter that danger is moil 'to be apprehended, in regard 
of the generality of mankind. For as it is difficult in 
many cafes, to draw the line exaclly between modera- 
tion and excefs, men have a thou fan d ways of excufing 
what is wrong, and of flattering themfelves that their 
pleafures are innocent when they are really hurtful. 
r l here are, however, certain rules by which, every one 
may be enabled to decide upon this queilion for him- 
felf, provided his pafiions and appetites are not under 
an undue influence. Innocent pleafures no doubt be- 
come criminal, when, inftead of invigorating, they re- 
i .x and enfeeble our fpirits : when they take up too 
much of our time, and fo <Sbftfu& the regular difcharge 
of duty y when they are an occafion of evil to others \ 
and above all, when they fo Ileal upon our affe&ions, 
as to indifpofe us to the more noble and refined enjoy- 
ments of virtue and religion, 

And now, it were endlefs to enumerate the many 
particulars that fall under the general character of the 
pleafures of this life. Nature has provided objects for 
all the fenfes Wonderfully adapted to afford them de- 
light ; and men have employed their utmofl wit and 
ingenuity, fo to combine, arrange, and divernfy them, 
as to heighten and refine the delight. Hence all the 
fcenes of fplendour that dazzle the eye, all the foft 
and harmonious founds that captivate the ear, and all 
the highly-flavoured delicacies that pleafe the tafte. 
Hence the amufements, recreations, and diverfions of 
various defcription, that every where abound, and 
among people of every rank and condition. Thefe 
are the things our Saviour fpeaks of which men luji 
N 3 y after. 



I CO WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 

after* That they may have the means of procuring 
them, is the end they propofe by the pains they take 
to get rich ; and to the enjoyment of them, they de- 
Vote all the time they can fequefter from their world- 
ly labours. Pleaiure is the grand thing *, their happi-- 
nefs is bound up in it. To the gratification of this 
paflion^ every thing muft fubmit. So they lofe fight r 
not only of God, but of all intellectual enjoyments, 
and at length, through excefs, become incapable of re= 
lilhing thofe very pleafures, which they account the 
chief good.. 

Having thus taken a general view of the cares 9 , 
riches, and pleafures of the world, our next bufinefs is 
to mew, how they obit met the due operation of God's 
word on the heart. But this we mail difmifs to the 
next opportunity, and clofe what has been faid, with a.- 
ferious^addrefs to three forts of perfons, the— careful*— = 
the covetous — and the voluptuous. 

i. As to thofe of the ftrfl defcription, the careful. 

Your cafe, my friends, is truly pitiable, and all cha- 
ritable allowance ought to be made for the unavoida- 
ble infirmities of human nature. It is not affluence but- - 
iubfiitence, or at moil competence, that is your object, 
You are, however, not wholly inexcufable. Prudence 
and induitry are amiable virtues y but your anxiety, 
exceeding the bounds of reafon, is orTenfive to God 
and injurious to yourfelves, and therefore defer ving of 
cenfure. It involves in it, a criminal diflruft of the 
feithfulnefs and goodnefs of divine Providence ; and 
this furely is very, difingenuous in thofe who fear God^ 
for to iach I am now more efpecially addreffing my- 
felf. What ! have you entrufted your immortal inte- 
tells to the care of the blefled God, and can you he- 
State .a moment upon the crueftion refpe&ing your tem- 
poral 



WORLDLY -Ml NDfD HEARERS, I-J I 

poral concerns ? Have you been hitherto provided with 
the neceffaries of life, and can you fuppofe your hea- 
venly Father, who knoweth that yon have need of 
thefe things, will defert you for time to come ? Be- 
fides, this undue folicitude abqut the world, is hurtful 
to vou in many refpefts. Inltead of forwarding, it 
rather obflrucls your affairs. It makes you unhappy, 
reftlefs, and miferable. And, what is worfe, it is a 
great hinderance to your progrefs in religion, as will 
hereafter be more largely (hewn. 

Let me befeech you, then, to be upon, your guard 
againfl this evil temper. Refill every temptation to 
it. Check the firfl rifings of it. Put the bell face 
you can upon your affairs. Gppofe your deferts to 
your wants, and the good you actually do poffefs to 
that you are in the anxious purfuit of. Give diligence 
to make your calling and election fure. Cherim in 
your bread a divine faith. Be thoroughly eilablilhed 
in the doctrine of a particular providence. Frequent- 
ly call to mind the interpolations of that providence 
in your favour. In a word, " be careful for nothing : 
but in every thing, by prayer and fupplication, with 
thankfgiving, let your requeiis be made known unto 
God*." 

2. As to the avaricioMS, 

Permit me, Sirs, to expoilulate with you a moment 
upon the extreme abfurdity of your reafoning, and the 
horrid criminality of your temper and conducl. It is 
not fubfiftence, competence, or affluence only, you co- 
vet , it is the world, the whole world. But the ob- 
ject is not to be attained, or if it were, it would not 
iatisfy. How vain the;) your dejlres ! But your ex- 
pectations are not boundlefs like your defires, they 

are 

* Philip, it. 6* 



2 WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 

are held within narrower limits. Yet we may venture 
to affirm they are extravagant y for the delires of the 
avaricious have fuch an influence oh their hopes, that 
it is fcarce poflible their expectations mould be mode- 
rate. You fanguinely hope for an object, which will- 
very probably elude your purfuit ; or r if compailed, 
will not afford you the comfort you promife yourfelf 
from it. How vain then are your expe&ations I Put 
fuch is your love of the world, you are refolved at all- 
adventures to make it your grand object. Be it fo 
then. Carry your refolution into practice. Put out 
all your ftretigth. Spend the greater part of your 
life in the purfuit. Leap over the mounds of honour 
and juftice. And at length feize your prey. But 
what, what do you gain ? Your gain is lofs } the lofs 
of health, peace, reputation, confcience, life, and — Oh 
tremendous thought ! — your immortal foul. 

Nor mould it be thought ilrange, that~the love of 
the world is punKhed with the lofs of the foul : It is 
anoft deferving of fuch punifhment y indeed the latter 
is the natural and neceffary refult of the former. What 
wretched diiingenuity, to love the world more- than 
God, that is, to love him not at all ! — to proftitute 
the bounty of your Sovereign to the purpofe of de- 
throning him ! A crime that wants a name for it. And 
how is it poflible, that a foul thus depraved mould be 
happy ? Such depravity, if not cured, neceffarily brings 
after it mifery. — How vain then are all your dejiresy 
your expeBations, and your exertions ! O that we 
could convince you of your folly and lin ! O that we 
could flop you in your mad career ! 
I But their conduct, who, un^ r a profeflion of reli- 
gion, make the world their object, is ftill more prepof- 
terous, bafe, and ruinous. What ! will you, Sirs, ha- 
ving 



-WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 1 53 

ving heard the word, and to appearance received it in- 
to your hearts, fufTer the briers and thorns to grow up 
with the feed and choak it ? yea, more than this, che- 
rifh the noxious weeds of deteftable avarice ? If fo, 
what may you reafonably expect as the fruit of this, 
your bafenefs and perfidy, but difappointment and for- 
row in this world, and the w T rath of God in that to 
come ? Can you wonder, " refclving," at all adventures^ 
" to be rich, that you fall into temptation, and a fnare, 
and into many fooliih and hurtful tufts, which drown 
men in deftruciion and perdition ? For the love of mo- 
ney is the root of all evil, which, w T hik fome coveted 
after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced them- 
felves through with many forrows *.V Hear, O hear, 
with folemn attention, the fentence of provoked jus- 
tice and abufed mercy, denounced upon you. " Go 
to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miferies 
that mall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, 
and your garments moth-eaten. Your gold and nlver 
is cankered, and the ruft of them (hall be a witnefs 
againfl yGU, and (hall eat your flefti as it were fire f 
Would to God, we could awaken you to repentance, 
ere it is too late ! 

But, while we are diffuading men from the love cf 
the world, have we no object to hold up to their view 
of fuperior value and excellence, to captivate their at> 
tention and engage their purfuit I We have. Hear 
the voice of Wifdom, litxen to the gracious entreaties 
of him who has immenfe wealth at his difpofal, and a 
heart freely to bellow it on all who in earneft feek it, 
" I love them that love me, and thofe that feek 'me 
early (hall find me. Riches and honour are with me y 
yea, durable riches and righteoufnefs. My fruit is 

better 

* i Tim. io, f James v. i, 2 f $ f 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS*. 

better than gold, yea, than fine gold 5 and my revenue 
than choice filver. I lead in the way of righteoufr.efs, 
in the midft of the paths of judgment. That I may 
caufe thofe that love me to inherk fubftance \ and I 
will fill their treafures *. n — I have only now to ad- 
drefs myfelf in a few words, 
3. To the voluptuous, 

The pleafures of the world are your object. But 
let me befeech you, Sirs, to confider a moment the 
extreme folly, fin, and danger of indulging this paffiori.- 
It fenfualizes the mind, and renders it incapable of 
thofe intellectual improvements and refined pleafures 
for which it was originally formed. It debafes men 
to the rank of the brute creation. It brings them in- 
to contempt among the wife, virtuous, and good. If 
robs them of their time which was given them, for 
the important purpofes of glorifying God, ferving their 
generation, and preparing for another world. It pre- 
cipitates them irtfo extravagancies which often prove - 
fatal, not only to their character, but their worldly 
profperity, and their very exigence. It brings a tre- 
mendous load of guilt upon their confciences, arms 
death with invincible terrors, and plunges them in all 
the miferies of that world, where this palTion cannot 
be gratified, and where there is not a drop of water to 
cool the parched tongue. For the truth of what we 
thus affirm, we appeal "to the dictates of found reafon, 
to the fentence of Scripture, to the united teftimony 
of all wife and good men, to your own painful feelings 
in an hour of fatiety and difguft, and to the concef- 
fions and exclamations of an infinite multitude of pro- 
fligate finners in the decline of life, and at the hour of 
death. Nor can you wonder, that fuch mould be the 

effect 

* Prov. viii. 17, — it. 



WORt,DLY-IVriND£D HEARERS, 1 55 

efie& of the lawkfs gratification of brutal appetites 
and pafiions. How fit that men ihould " eat of the 
fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own 
devices * I" How fit that they who- have been " lovers 
of pleafure, more than lovers of God f mould " lie 
down in forrow J," and "mourn at the laft, when 
their fledi and their body are confumed |] !" 

Let me then befeech you, O ye who have been hi- 
therto " given to pleafures and have M lived de« 
licioufly feriouily to confider thefe things. Why 
mould you throw the reins upon the neck of your lulls, 
and wilfully refolve upon your own ruin ? Why fihould 
you tempt down the vengeance of Almighty God upon 
your head, by ungratefully abufing the bounty of his 
providence ? Is filicide no fin ? Are the pleafures of 
fenfe, a valuable consideration for the lofs of the foul ? 
"««— But if, after all our remonftrances and expofiula- 
tions, ye are determined to " walk in the ways of your 
heart, and in the fight of your eyes, know ye, that for 
all thefe things, God will bring you into judgment **." 

Thus would we fain ftem the torrent of this wretch- 
ed infanity, bring men to their fenles, and convince 
them, that by an excefnve love of pleafure, they are 
entailing upon themfelves fubfiantial mifery. But do 
we mean to annihilate all idea of pleafure, and to throw 
every pofiible obilruc"iion in your way to happinefs ?— 
That would be cruel indeed ! Xo. The reverfe is our 
objecl. We wifh to perfuade you of a plain and moft 
interefting truth, attefied by the word of God and the' 
experience of the bell of men, that religion is true wif- 
dom, and that " her ways are ways of pleafantnefs, and 

all 

* Prov. i. 3 x. f 2 Tim. iii. 4. J Ifa. 1. 11, 

P, Prov. v it. § Ifa. xivii. 8. Rev. xvii-i. 7 , 

** Ecclef. xi.^. 



I56 WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 

all her paths peace Her form is moft beautiful, 
liowever (he may have been mifreprefented by preju- 
dice, and her counfels mo ft foft and engaging, howe- 
ver rejected by a vain world. " She hath builded her 
houfe, me hath hew T n out her feven pillars. She hath 
killed her beafts, (he hath mingled her wine fhe 
hath alfo furnifhed her table. She hath fent forth her 
maidens, fhe crieth upon the higheft places of the city* 
Whofo is fimple, let him turn in hither ) as for him 
that wanteth underftanding, (he faith to him, Come, 
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have 
mingled. Forfake the foolith and live \ and go in the 
way of understanding \ Oh ! may you be perfuad- 
ed to accept of her generous invitation, and to partake 
of this delicious entertainment — an entertainment pre- 
pared at an expence that furpaffes all human imagina- 
tion ! So will you be convinced, by your own happy 
experience, that he who renounces the pleafures of fin 
for the pleafures of religion, makes an exchange to his 
unfpeakable advantage in the prefent life, as well as 
his infinite emolument in the world to come. 

PART II. 

" Some feeds," our Saviour tells us in the text, 
" fell among thorns : and the thorns fprung up and 
choaked, them J." This figurative account of the 
worldly-minded hearer we have explained, ailifted 
by our Lord's own exposition of it in the following 
words, " He that received feed among the thorns, is 
he that heareth the w T ord : and the care of this world, 
and the deceitfulnefs of riches choak the w 7 ord, and he 

becometh 

* Prpv.iii. 17. f Prov.ix. 1— 6. % Matt. xiii. 7. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEAREP.S. I 

l>ecometh unfruitful *. The man of this charafter re- 
ceives the word, profeffes it, and for fome confiderable 
time, if not to the end of his life, perfeveres in his pro- 
feflion. He is, however, unfruitful. The caufes of 
bis unfruitfulnefs are now under confideration. Thefe 
our Lord hath particularly mentioned, namely, the 
cares, riches, and pleafures of the world, — Of each of 
thefe we have propofed, therefore, to give fome general 
account— to (hew you how an undue attention to them 
obftructs the operation of God's word on the heart— 
and to reprefent to you the fad event of fuch intimate 
commerce with the world. The fir ft was the fubjeft 
of the former fermon : and we go on, 

II. To enquire how the cares, riches, and pleafures 
of the world operate to prevent the falutary effect o£ 
God's word on the hearts of men. 

There is no profiting by the word we hear, without 
_duly weighing and confided ng it. Now, there are 
three things nejceffary to our praclinng the great duty 
of confideration with effect — Leifure — Compofure— 
and Inclination to the bufinefs. But the cares, riches, 
and pleafures of the world deprive men of all thefe, or 
at leaft, make conflderable encroachments on them. 

FIRST, Leifure. 

Ground choaked with briers and thorns, affords not 
room for the feed caft upon it to expand and grow* 
In like manner, he, whofe attention is wholly taken up 
with fecular affairs, has not leifure for confideration e 
He can fcarce find time for hearing the word, much 
lefs for reading the Bible, meditating on divine truths, 
and examining his heart. And however good men^ 
when employed about their worldly bufinefs, can eve- 
ry now and then advert to the concerns of their fouls, 

O and 



I58 WORLDLY-MINDED KEARER5. 

and frequently in the courfe of the day, dart an affec- 
tionate prayer to Heaven , it is quite otherwife with 
the unhappy man, ivhofe cafe we are defcribing. Each 
avenue of his heart, is fo clofely occupied by the world, 
that not a ferious thought can enter, except by Health 
or furprize. 

Say, you who are oppreffed with the ca-res, or ab~ 
forbed in the pleafures of life, whether this is not the 
fact ? What is it flrfi: catches your imagination when 
you awake in the morning ? What is it engroffes your 
attention all the day ? What is it goes with you to 
your bed, and follows you through the reftlefs hours 
of night ? What is it you are conftantly thinking of 
at home, abroad, and in the houfe of God ? It is the 
world. Oh fad ! not a day, not an hour, fcavce a mo- 
ment in referve, for a meditation on God, your foul, 
and an eternal world ! And can religion cxiil where it 
is never thought of, or, gain ground in a heart where 
it is but now and then adverted to ? As well might a 
man expect to live without fuflenance, or get llrcng 
■without digefting his food. That then, which de- 
prives men of time for confederation, is effentially inju- 
rious to religion.' And fuch is the charge our Savi- 
our exhibits againft the cares, riches, and pleafures of 
the world j for the truth of which, we appeal, not on- 
ly to the bulk of mankind, but to multitudes who pro- 
fefs religion, and flatter themfeives with a notion, that 
they are in the fair way to heaven. 

Time is the gift of God, a boon of ineftimable va- 
lue : What pity it mould be abufed or trifled with ! I 
fay not, that it is to be wholly employed in meditation 
and devotion. That man rniflakes religion, who, un- 
der a notion of exalted piety, turns his back on the 
"World, and retires into obfeurity. There is a time for 

every 



W~0RXD:LY-MINDE£ HEARERS* Ij^T 

every tiling under the fan. A time for prudent con- 
iideration about our temporal intereris. A time for 
honeft labour, to procure a fuhiiftence, and to acquire 
a competence. A time for food- and fleep. And a 
time for recreation and amufement. We may enjoy 
what God has given us as well as labour for it. 

But upon what principle is religion to be deprived" 
of its juft claims ? If it is the moft important of all 
concerns, and if it cannot be forwarded without conii- 
deration and prayer, it has a juit title to a convenient 
fhare of our time for thofe purpofes. God has ap- 
pointed one day in feven, for our repofe and his wor- 
fhip, and fhall worldly anxieties and pleafures defraud 
both him and us of our right ? He hath required us to 
allot a portion of each day for the devotion of the fa- 
mily and clofet, and mail this portion, though finally 
be avaricioufly engrolTed by fecular affairs ? It is the 
voice of reafon, that our thoughts mould every now 
and then advert to the concerns of our fouls , and (hall 
the perplexing cares, and vain amufements of life, 
cruelly exacl of us ever;* moment that paffes ? What 
are fuch horrid depredations as thefe, on time, better 
than facrilege ? And what the tamely fubmitting ta 
them than fuicide ? — But to proceed. The world not 
only deprives men of time and opportunity for con&> 
deration, but alfo, 

SECONDLY, Of Compofure. 

By compofure, I mean that calmnefs or felf-pofief- 
fiorij whereby we are enabled to attend foberly and 
without interruption to the bufinefs we are about. Con- 
rlderation implies this in it ; For how is it poflible that 
a man mould duly conlider a fubject, whether civil or 
religious, coolly reafon upon it, and thoroughly enter 
into the fpirit ot it ) if his mind is all the while occu- 
pied 



I SO WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 

pied with a thbufand other things, foreign to the mat- 
ter before him ? In order, therefore, to our doing juf- 
tice to any queltion of importance, we muft rid our 
minds of all impertinent thoughts, be fe If- collected, 
and fix our attention fteadily to the point. How dif- 
ficult this is I need not fay. Studious people feel the 
difficulty ' 7 and in regard of religion, the beft of men 
are fenfible of their weaknefs in this refpecl, and deep- 
ly lament it. But where the world gains the afcen- 
dant, this difficulty is mcreafed, and, in fome inltances, 
becomes almofi: infuperable. Let me here defcribe to 
you, in a few words^ the almoft incelTant hurry and 
confufion of their minds, who anfwer to the three cha- 
racters in our text of the careful, the covetous, and the 
voluptuous. So you will clearly fee, how impoflible 
it is for perfons thus circumftanced, to pay that atten- 
tion to religious fubjecls, which is neceffary in order 
to their being profited by them. 

1. The cafe of him who ftr fwallowed up with the 
anxious cures of life is truly lamentable. 

It is not riches the unhappy man aims at^ but a com- 
petence, or perhaps a mere fubiiftence. The dread of 
being reduced, with his family, to extreme poverty, 
harrows up his very foul. The horrid fpe&res of con- 
tempt, famine and a prifon, haunt his imagination. He 
fancies himfelf turned out of his dwelling, his fubftance 
torn from him by mercilefs creditors, his children cry- 
ing for bread, and he and they juft on the point of 
llarving. To efcape thefe miferies, or to hold them at 
a diftance, he racks his invention, exerts all his powers, 
and allows himfelf fcarce time to eat or fleep. Thefe 
fad thoughts, engendered by gloominefs and timidity, 
flrengthened by a finful diftruft of providence, and 
promoted by the artful fuggeftions of fatan, follow him 

day 



WORLDLY -MINDED HEARERS. l6t 

day and night, embarrafs his mind, prey upon bis fpi- 
rits, and make him wretched to the laft degree. Like 
a diftracled man, now be is looking this way, and then 
that ) now making a fruitlefs effort, and then on the 
point of giving up ail for lofh How deplorable this 
Hate of the mind ! 

And how incapable is a man, thus circumrtanced, of 
coolly thinking on the great things of religion ! Does 
he attempt in his retirement to fix his attention to fome 
divine fubjedi ? he initantly fails in the attempt, cares 
like a wild deluge rum in upon his foul, and break all 
the meafures he had taken to obtain a little refpite 
from his trouble. Does he go down upon his knees 
to pray ? He has fcarce uttered a fentence, before he 
is thrown into confufion by difordered thoughts and 
wandering imaginations \ fo that the dread of affront- 
ing God by offering the facriflce of fools, obliges him 
to de-lift. Does he go to the houfe of God ? thither his 
anxieties follow him, ffand like fo many centinels at 
each avenue of his foul, to fhut out all inftru&ion 
from his ear and all comfort from his heart ) fo that 
he goes from thence as uninformed and unhappy as he 
came thither. Thus do the cares of the world choak 
the wordy and choak the man himjelf, as Luke ex- 
preffes it * : like thorns and briers, they pierce and 
fuffocate him, at once torment his heart and enfeeble 
his powers. And though they may not, in every in- 
fiance, proceed to the lengths we have reprefented 3 
yet it is eafy to imagine, from what has been faid, how 
they-prove, in cafes lefs diftrefling, mighty obftruclicns 
to the falutary effect of the word on the heart. 

2. The like effecl hath an eager defire after richer 
to difquali*/ men for consideration, 

O 3 Avaricious 
* Luke viii, 14. 



X6'2 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 



Avaricious defires may not indeed be attended with 
the anguifh juft deicribed, yet they no lefs effectually 
difable the powers of the foul for the right difcharge 
of religious duties. Wealth becoming a man's object, 
_and its deceitful charms getting fail held on his heart, 
the prize will be continually in his eye, and the means 
of acquiring it engrofs all his thoughts. His fpecula- 
tions, reafonings, deliberations, and efforts, will all be 
directed to this point. Now he is laying his plan, ad- 
juring each circumftance, confidering their various 
and united effect, and providing for all contingencies 
that may arife and thwart his views.. And then you 
fee him carrying his plans into execution, with unre- 
mitting ardour, fetting each engine at work, and look- 
ing forward with eager expectation to the event. If 
he fucceeds, his paffion for wealth collects frefh 
itrength,, and without allowing him to paufe a while}, 
to enjoy the fruit of his labour, pufhes him on to fome 
further exertion. If he fails, the failure ftimulates 
him to fome bolder enterprize. And thus he is em- 
ployed from day to day } his thoughts inceflantly wan- 
dering from one objecl: of fenfe to another, his invention 
perpetually on the rack, and his paffionSj like the ra- 
ging fea, in a continual agitation. 

Now, amid ft this tumult of the mind, how can a 
man think foberly of the great truths and duties of re- 
ligion, of the ftate of his foul, and the concerns of ano- 
ther world ? If we could fuppofe him in the lealt de- 
gree well affected to religion, which indeed is fcarce 
imaginable, it were yet almoft impoflible for him to 
pay proper attention to it. Perhaps the form is not 
wholly laid alide j but what is it more than a form ? 
" He draweth nigh* to God with his mouth, and ha* 
noureth him with his lips,, but his heart is far from 

him,'! 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 165 

him *." When on his knees he is frill in the world : 
when he is worfhipping God in his family he is ftill 
pur iuing his gain. His clofet is an accompting houfe, 
and his church art exchange. Surely then, our Lord 
knew what he faid, when, to the aitonrfhment of his 
difciples, he affirmed, that " it is eaiier for a camel to 
go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man 
to enter into the kingdom of God f\" — From what 
has been faid, it is eafy to fee alfo, 

3. How an eager attention to worldly plea fur es muft 
have the like effect, to render the mind incapable c£ 
ferious confideration. 

Scenes of fplendour, gaiety, and fenfual delight are 
ever before the eyes of men of this character. Their 
thoughts are inceffantly employed about thefe objeclsj 
realizing the fancied blifs they have in profpeft before 
it is actually enjoyed, deviling the neceffary means of 
acquiring it, preffing on to it with ardent defire, grudg- 
ing every moment that holds them back from it, and 
reckoning no time too long for the poffeffion of what 
they account the chief good. 

And what is the effecl in regard of rehVJon ? Do 
thefe fons of pleafure, vouclifafe at any time to prefent 
themfelves among the fons of God, in the temple of 
devotion ? one may eafily imagine what kind of offer- 
ing they bring with them 5 not that of a willing heart, 
but of "an hour fequeftered againft the will, from their 
extravagant purfuits. Do they ever retire, for a few 
moments, to read and pray ? one may affirm, though 
not admitted into the fecret counfels of their hearts, 
that they read without undemanding, and pray with- 
out devotion. For how is it poflible, that a mind thus 
hurried, thus diffipated, thus intoxicated with vain 

amufementSj 
* Matt. xv. 81. \ Mark x. 25, 



1&4 WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 

amuiemehts-, mould be capable of thinking foberly of 
God and a future world, of death, judgment, and eter- 
nity ! Communion with heaveivamidit this riot of the 
mind, would be a greater folecifm than philcfophifmg. 
at a feaft of Bacchus, or demon ftrating a problem at a 
mafquerade. But I forbear.. — There remains one thing- 
more to be confidered, in order to mew how the cares, 
riches, and pleafures of this life operate, to prevent the 
falutary effect of the word on the heart. They not 
only deprive men of time and compofure for ferious 
soniideration, but, 

THIRDLY, Gf all Inclination to it. 
; Where indeed the love of the world prevails, let a 
man's profeflion be ever fo fplendid, there is no real 
religion \ fo that fuch an one neither has, nor ever had 
a difpofition to ferious confederation. But what I' 
mean, is to (hew, that an eager attention to the things 
of this life, confirms the habit of inconfideration, and 
tends, where there is an aptitude to meditation, to 
weaken and deprave it. A mind wholly occupied with 
the dbj eels of fenfe, is not only eftranged from the 
great realities of religion, but averfe to them. As it 
has neither leifure nor calmnefs for fublime contem- 
Diations, fo it has no tafte or relifh for them. " The 
carnal mind is enmity againft God And the mote 
carnal it grows, by inceffant commerce with the world, 
the more does that prejudice and enmity increaie, 
What violence are fuch men obliged to put upon them- 
selves, if at any time, by fome extraordinary circum- 
flance, they are prevailed on to think of the concerns 
of their fouls ! The bufinefs is not only aukward, as 
they are unaccuftomed to it, but it is exceeding irk- 
fome and paiuful. And fomething of this, good men 

themfelves 

# Rom. viii. 7. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 1 5 J 

themfelves feel, when captivated for a while, by the 
cares and purfuits of the world. What a flrange back- 
wardnefs do they complain of, to holy and devout ex- 
ercifes ! In their {lumbers, though not fallen into a 
deep fleep, they have little heart for thofe vigorous ex- 
ercifes of the mind, which a rapid progrefs in religion 
demands. " They have put off their coat," as the 
church expreffes it in the fong of Solomon *, " and 
how mail they put it on !" 

Now, if a hearty inclination to any bufinefs, is necef- 
fary to a man's considering it, and io being in a capaci- 
ty to purfue it with attention and fuccefs ; whatever 
tends to abate that inclination, or to confirm the oppo- 
iite averlion, is effentially injurious to fuch bufinefs. In 
like manner, with refpecl to the great concerns of re- 
ligion, the cares, riches, and pleafures of the world, by 
wholly occupying the mind, indifpofe it to confidera- 
tion, and fo choak the word, and render it unfruitful* 
—And now this leads us to confider, 

III. The fad event of fuch undue commerce with 
the world. The unhappy man, not having leifure, 
calmnefs, or inclination to attend to the word, neither 
underjlands it, believes it, or is obedient to it : and con- 
tinuing in this wretched (rate of ignorance, impenitence 
and unbelief, he is finally loft. 

I. He underftands not the word of the kingdom. 

And indeed hew mould he, taken up, as he almoffc 
constantly is, with thinking, reafoning, and caring about 
other matters ? Or if he has a fpeculative acquaintance 
with the truths of religion, it is not, it cannot be ex- 
perimental and practical. Ah ! how ignorant is he of 
God, his perfections, ways, and works ! Of himfelf, 
his capacities and interefts, his tiue Hate and condition, 

the 

* Cant. v. 3. 



2 66 WORLDLY-MINDED REARERS* 

the plague of his heart, and the danger to which he. if 
expofed ! Of Chrifi:, the glories of his perfon, redemp- 
tion, and kingdom ! Of the beauty of holinefs, the re- 
fined pleafures of religion, and the joys and triumphs 
of heaven ! Thefe are things which the objects of / 
fenfe thruft far away from his view, fo that he feldorr^ 
if ever, fpends m thought about them. And however 
fugacious he is in the management of his temporal af- 
fairs, he is a perfecl fool in his conception and reaion- 
ings about matters of infinitely greater moment. Like 
a wretch immured in a cell, he contents himfelf with 
viewing, by the help of a glimmering taper, the chil- 
difh figures his fancy has chalked out around him \ 
while the man of wifdom walks in the light of broad 
day, viewing the fhipendous works of God, by the aid- 
of that great luminary, the fun of righteoufnefs, to his 
infinite joy and emolument. — And as he underftand* 
not the word of the kingdom, fo, 
2. Neither does he believe it. 

It is not his profeffing it that proves he believes it- 
Nor does his admitting it all to be true, in the cold, 
lifelefs manner of the generality of people, conftitute 
him a believer in the fenfe of the New Teitament. No, 
he who believes the gofpel to the falvation of his foul, 
mud enter into the fpirit of it. But how can that man 
be fuppofed to have entered into the fpirit of the gof- 
pel, of whofe heart the god of this world has taker* 
quiet poffefiion ? To a mind, wherein this wretched 
demon lives, reigns, and domineers, the faith as well as 
the knowledge of divine truth is an utter flranger. 
And O how deplorable the character ? — To profefs 
the faith, and at the fame time to be no better than an 
infidel !. — to take pains to perfuade himfelf and all 

about 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. lfjj 

about Him that he believes, and yet to remain under 
dominion of unbelief and fin ! — Again, 

3. Not rightly understanding or believing the word 
of the kingdom, he is not obedient to it. 

Fruit is not to be expected from feed fown among 
thorns, at leaft not good fruit or much of it. The ears 
will be, like thofe in Pharaoh's dream, thin, withered, 
and blaHed with the eaft wind. So Luke exprefsly 
(ays, he u brings no fruit to perfection If you 

look for 44 the fruit -of the Spirit," fuch as 44 love, joy, 
peace, long-fuffering, gentlenefs, goodnefs, faith, meek- 
nefs, and temperance f," you will be miferably difap- 
pointed. None of thefe divine graces live in his heart, 
* and ihine in his life : at bed you will difcover only the 
bare femblance of triem, a kind of fruit unpleahng to 
the eye, and dilgurting to the tafte. Amidit the cares, 
riches, and pleafures of the world, the faint, dwindling, 
impotent efforts of fome thing like religion are quickly 
ijitocated and la It — Here perhaps it will be expected, 
that we enter into a particular confide ration of this 
beautiful and Unking exprefTion of our Saviour's— 
44 they bring no fruit to perfection. " — But as it will be 
the bufinefs of the next difcourfe, to give a particular 
a ceo unt of the nature and quality of the fruit required 
of every genuine Christian, we mall enlarge no further 
here. — And now, 

4. And laftiy, What is the final kTue of all ? Why, 
the man himfelf, as well as the feed, is choaked : for 
ib Luke expreffes it J. 

And Oh ! how fad, after a prcfefnon protracted to a 
confide rable length, not renounced by avowed apoltafy, 
or difgraced by any grofs act of immorality 5 to mifs of 
heaven and all its joys and triumphs, and 44 to be turn- 
ed 

* Chap. viiL 14. f Gal. y. 22, 23. | Luke viii. 14. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. 



€d into hell with the wicked, and all the nations that 
forget God * !" O tremendous, to receive the curfe of 
the barren fig-tree from his lips whofe name yon have 
profeffed ! to be driven like chaff before the wind ! 
and not having brought forth good fruit to be hewn 
down and caft into the fire ! 

Thus have we confidered the cares, riches, and plea- 
fures of the world $ their operation on that clafs of 
hearers our Lord means here to defcribe } and the fad 
event of all. Let us now clofe the whole with fome 
feafonable exhortations. 

l. Let the profefibrs of religion have no more to do 
with the world than duty clearly requires. 

This is found, wholefome, fcriptural advice. The 
Bible does not teach us to affect precifenefs and fin- 
gularity, to affume a fevere, gloomy, afcetic counte- 
nance and mariners, and peevifhly to withdraw our- 
felves from fociety and the civil concerns of life : yet 
furely it does require more of us than efcaping the 
grofs pollutions of the world, and the preferving a good 
fober moral character. Otherwife I know not what 
tolerable rational account to give of the following pre- 
cepts — 66 If any man will be my difciple, let him de- 
ny himfelf, and take up his crofs and follow mef 
" Whofoever will be a friend of the world, is the ene- 
my of God J." — " Be not conformed to this world j 
but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind ]|." 

Come out from among them, and be ye feparate, 
and touch not the unclean thing § — "Have no fellow- 
fhip with the unfruitful works of darknefs ^[." — " See 
that ye walk circumfpeclly,not as fools, but as wife**/* 

— " Abftain 

* Pfal ix. 17. f Matth. xvi. 24. % James iv. 4. 
1| Rom, xii. 2. § 2 Cor. vi. 17. If Ephef, v. iu 

** Ver. 15. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS. I69 

— u Abftain from all appearance of evil A Chri- 
itian, efpecially if he be a good natured man, is in 
greater danger from compliances of a doubtful ill ten- 
dency, than from temptations to direcl immoralities. 
The latter he will know how eafiiy to refjfl, while the 
former may prove a fnare to him before he is aware. 
Heaven is the good man's object, and in order to im- 
bibe a fpirit fuited to that ft ate, he will find the disci- 
pline of the heart a neceiTary and painful bufinefs \ 
but how that can be carried on amidft the drudgery of 
avaricious purfuits, or the levity of vain amufements, I 
am at a lois to fay. Let us then " endure hardnefs as 
good foldiers of Chrift and as we wi(h " to pleafe 
him who has chofen us to be foldiers," let us take heed 
-hew " w r e entangle ourfelves with the affairs of this 
life f 

2. If thorns before we are aware get in, let us in- 
ftantly root them out. 

The bell of men are expofed to temptation, and too 
often foiled though not overcome by it. The Chiiftian 
like tn eagle foars to heaven, yet his flight may on a 
fudden be impeded by the grofinefs of the atmofphere 
through which he pafTes ; and though like that prince 
of birds, he has an eye that can look at the fun, yet his 
eye may for a moment be captivated by the falfe glare 
of terreilrial objects. Eut he will quickly, animated 
by the grace of God, turn away his eye from behold- 
ing vanity, and with redoubled vigour renew his flight 
to heaven. He has a talte for fublime enjoyments^ 
and that taile, though it may be in a degree vitiated, 
cannot be wholly loft. 

Consider then, O men of God, your high character 
and noble birth. Walk worthy of the vocation where- 
P with 
* 1 TherT. v. 22. f 2 Tim. ii. 5, 4. 



1^0 -WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS* 

with you are called. Demean yourfelves in a manner 
becoming your holy profeiTicn and glorious profpecls. 
If the objecls of fenfe, before you are aware, catch your 
attention and captivate your paiFions, difentangle your- 
felves as quickly as poffible from the charm. Hefi- 
tate not a moment. Exert all the power of Chriftian 
refolution. Tear up by the roots the briers and thorns 
of worldly cares, and the poifonous weeds of fafcinat- 
ing pleafures. They are of luxuriant growth, and if 
not inflantly checked and by fevere difcipline deftroy- 
ed, they will overfpread the heart, choke every pious 
fentiment and virtuous affection, and in the end create 
you infinite trouble and anguifh. No time is to be loit<, 
The further you advance in a courfe of life, which 
though not direftly criminal yet tends to embarrafs your 
-inind_, weaken your graces, and indifpofe you to the 
duties of religion } the more difficult w T ill be your re- 
treat. . Oh ! how have fome good men, in the clofe of 
life, lamented in the bitternefs of their fpirit the advan- 
tage which the world has gained over them "5 and warn- 
ed thofe about them to beware of the encroachments, 
which this iniidious . enemy imperceptibly makes upon 
the human heart ! 

3. Receive the good feed. > 
It is not enough that the ground is cleared of noxi- 
ous w T eeds, if it be not fown with the proper grain. 
Neither is it fufficient to guard agamft the corrupt 
maxims, cuftoms, and manners of the world, if our 
hearts are not impregnated with divine truth. What 
that is we have already ihevvn you. ft is " the word 
of the ^dngdom," the pure gofpel of lefus ChrifL We 
exhort you therefore to hear the word diligently, to 
take pains to underfland it, to yield a cordial aflent to 
it, to lay it up in your memories, and to revolve it fre- 
quently 



worldly-mind fd hearers, 171 

auentlv in your minds. " Let the word of Chrift 
dwell in you richly in all wlfdom V " Receive with 
meeknefs the ingrafted word, which is able to fave 
your fouls f And be affured M it will build you up 5 
and give you an inheritance among all them which are 
Janciified 

An experimental acquaintance with the gofpel is the 
belt mean to fortify the heart againft the afiaults or 
the world. Reaion and obfervation, every now and 
then, extort from our lip=-, a cold feeble' acknowledg- 
ment, that the riches, honours, and pleafures of this 
life are uncertain and unsatisfying J yet alas ! they nil! 
cling about our hearts, . J .Ulurb the peace of x>ur minds, - 
and obftruS: our piogrefs towards heaven. But a be** 
lieving contemplation on^divine truth, fixes fuch a deep 
conviction in our bofoms of the vanity of the world, 
as fails not to inter eft our warmed palnons, and fo to 
have a commanding influence on our conduct. In thofe 
happy moments, the world appears very little indeed, 
juft fuch a trilling object, as it is in the eye of him, 
who apprehends himielf pairing out of time into eter* 
nity. 

Go then, Chriftian, to the crofs of Chrift, fix your 
eye on the fufrering Saviour, contemplate his character, 
and well confider the infinitely benevolent intent of 
what he endured \ and fure I am, you will cry out in 
the language of the great apoftle, " God forbid that I 
mould glory, fave in the crofs of our Lord jefus Chrift, 
by whom the world is crucified unto me, and 1 unto 
the world jj." It is not imaginable how the thorns 
and oriers of worldly cares and pleafures, mould get 
ground in a heait where the word of the kingdom thus 

takes 

* Coi. iii, 16. \ Tames i. 22. 

% Ads ?x. 32, J! Gal.vi. 14. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS a 

takes deep root, fpreads on every fide, and gains new 
ftrength and vigour every day. The reafonings o£ 
mere philofophy, will have little effect to combat the 
frubbcm propenfities of the neart to the world, and to 
elevate the foul to God. But .the fublime truths of 
Chriftianity, accompanied with a divine energy, will 
not fail to compafs thefe great objects. 

Let me then befeech you, Chriftians, befeech all 
that hear me, to liftento the voice of divine wifdom, 
to hang attentively on her lips, to receive her doctrine, 
and accept her gracious invitations. She bids us to an 
entertainment the moil free, expensive, and delicious j 
an entertainment that will not fail to pleafe our tafle, 
cheer our fpirits, and flrengthen our hearts. " Ho, 
every one that thirtieth, come ye to the waters, and he 
that hath no money m y come ye, buy and eat, yea, come * y 
buy wine and milk, without money and without price. 
Wherefore do ye fpend money for that which is not 
bread ? and your labour for that which fatisfieth not ? 
hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is 
good, and let your foul delight itfelf in fatnefs. In- 
cline your ear, and come unto me : hear, and your foul 
fhall live, asd I will make an everlafting covenant with 
you, even the fure mercies of David 

4. And laftly, Look to God for his bleffing. 

" Paul may plant, and Apollos water \ but it is God 
that giveth the increafe f We may hear, read, me- 
ditate, reflect, watch, and ufe many good endeavours - y 
but if no regard be had to a fuperior influence, all will 
be vain. The world hath fo many ways of infinuating 
itfelf into our affections, the great enemy of mankind 
is fo infidious and malevolent, and our hearts are fo 

vain 

# Ifa. lv. 1—3. t 1 Cor. iii. 6. 



WORLDLY-MINDED HEARERS, I 73 

vain and treacherous ; that if God be not with us, we 
fhail be quickly foiled and overcome. 

Truri not then, Chriftian, your own fagacity, refo- 
lution, and itrength. Many have done lb, and been 
made amamed. Prayer is your refuge. - Oh ! pray 
without ceafhag. Implore the gracious influences of 
the Holy- Spirit \ weep and make fupplication, as did 
Tacob, to the angel of the covenant j refolve with him, 
that you will npt leave him except he blefs you.- Such 
importunity, accompanied, as it always is, with circum- 
fpe6Hon and obedience, will fucceed : and how glorious 
the fuccefs ! He is faithful that hath promifed. M My 
grace is fufficient for thee*." w The youths (hall 
faint and be weary, and the young men mall utterly 
foil. But they that wait upon the Lord, mail renew 
their ftrength : they mall mount up with wings as ea- 
gles, they fhail run and not be weary, and they mall 
walk and not faint f." " Thofe fhat be planted in the 
houfe of the Lord, fhail flourifh in the courts of our 
God. They fhail ftill bring forth fruit in old age : 
they fn all be fat and flourifhing $ to fhew that the 
Lord is upright : he is my rock, and there is no un~ 
righteoufnefs in him J." 

* iCcr. xii.p. f Ifa, xL 30, 31; J Pfal, xcii. 13, 14, 15, 



BIS- 



DISCOURSE V. 



THE CHARACTER OF SINCERE HEARERS 
CONSIDERED. 



Mat. xiii. 8. 

But other feeds fell into good ground, and Brought 
forth fruit, fome a?i hundred fold } fome fixty 
fold, fome thirty fold. 

IT is one, among many other linking proofs of the 
divinity of our Saviour's mirTion, that the treatment 
l ^ofpel meets with in the world, exactly correfponds 
wich his own predictions. In the parable under our 
confideration, he tells his apoitles, that fome would pay 
little or no attention to it ; that others, receiving it 
with great appearance of zeal, would, after a while, 
upcn fome offence taken, renounce it j and that a third 
fort of perfons, having more difpaffionately profeffed 
the Chriftian name, would, in a courfe of time, through 
-a too intimate connection with the world, grow indif- 
ferent to their profeffion, and fail of attaining the great 
object of it, eternal life. 

Thefe three diftinct characters we have considered 
under the feveral denominations of — the inattentive 

—the ENTHUSIASTIC — the WORLDLY-MINDED. — And I 

prefurue^ 



SINCERE HEARERS. - 175 

prefume, the view we have taken of the disingenuous 
temper, criminal conduct, and final puniihment oi" thefe 
unhappy perfons, hath deeply affected our hearts. But 
a fcene of a different kind now opens to our view. Al- 
though the minifters of this-gofpel, are u a favour of 
death unto death/' to multitudes who hear it, yet they 
are to many others " a favour of life unto life And 
we may depend upon it, that God will not forget his 
gracious promife : u My word that goeth forth out of 
my mouth, {hall not return unto me void, but it fhall 
accomplifh that which I pleafe, and it (hall profper irt 
the thing whereto I fent it f ." 

Mi ny there are then, who hear the word of the king- 
dom, and are thereby made wife unto falvation. The 
character of thefe happy perfons, we are now to conn- 
der, and mail llyle them, by way of diitinction from 
the former, the sincere, that is, genuine Chriftians, 
The text fays, " Other feeds fell into good ground, 
/ and brought forth fruit, fome an hundred fold, fome 
fixty fold, fome thirty fold." 

Ground within an inclofure, and properly manured, 
is better fitted to receive feed, than that on the way- 
fide, in ftony places, or in the hedges. Seed fownhere 
at the proper feafon, and by a ikilful hand, will be 
likely to mangle with the foil, and under the genial in- 
fluence of the mn,_and the falling dew and rain, to 
fpring up and bring forth fruit. But the produce, 
through a variety of circum fiances too numerous to be 
mentioned, will on fome lands and in feme countries, 
be more conliderable than others. Such is the figure 
in our text. 

Our Saviour's exposition of this part of the parable 
you liave in the twenty-third verfe — " He that recei- 
ved 

* a Cor. ii. io\ f Ifa. Iv. iu 



I76 SINCERE HEARERS a 

ved feed into the good ground, is he that heareth the 
word, and underftandeth it, which alfo bearcth fruit, 
and bringeth forth, feme an hundred fold, fome fixty, 
fome thirty." Luke expreiles it fomewhat differently 
— That on" the good ground, are they, which in an 
honed and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, 
and bring forth fruit with patience The &t& thing 

that flrikes us here, is^ 

t. That thefe hearers have ; honejl and good hearts. 
The- ground muix be properly manured and prepared, 
before the feed can fo, mingle with it, as to produce 
fruit. In like manner, the powers of the foul mull be 
renewed by divine grace, before the initructions of 
God's word can fo incorporate with them as to become 
fruitful. The heart which was prone to deceive, flat- 
ter, and impofe upon itfelf, muft be made fincere and 
honeft. And the heart which was hard, conceited, 
and felf-willed, muft become foft, humble, and 
teachable. Now, the metaphor, thus explained, 
gives us a two-fold view 01 the word of God, as the 
mean or inftrument of mens converfion, and as the 
feed implanted -in their hearts from, whence the fruits 
of obedience proceed. And this account of the mat- 
ter very well agrees with what we meet with in 
other paffages of Scripture, as particularly in the epif- 
tle of James f , where u God " is faid '* of his own will 
to beget us with the word of truth f\ and in a few 
verfes afterwards, we are reprefented as u receiving 
with meeknefs the ingrafted word, which is able to 
fave our fouls." And it agrees too with the facl, for 
it frequently fo happens that men, who come to the 
hbufe of God unprepared, and with hearts neither ho- 
neil nor good, are yet by the preaching of the word> 

accompanied 
% Chap, 15, f James i. 18. 21. 



SINCERE HEAREHS. , TJJ 

accompanied with a divine energy, convinced and-con- 
verted. Their underftanding is illuminated, and a 
new bent is given to their will. — So, 

2. They hear the word after a different manner, and 
to a very different purpofe from what others do, and 
from what they themfelves formerly did. They hear 
it with attention, candour, rneeknefs, and fimplicity. — 
And then— to go on with our Saviour's account of 
thefe hearers — they, 

3. Underjland the word. 

This is not exprefsly faid, as I remember, of either 
of the former characters. They indeed w T ho are defti- 
tute of the grace of God, may have a fpeculative ac- 
quaintance with the gofpel but mingling their own 
vain conceits with it, and not being fenfible of its im- 
portance nor imbibing its' true fpirit, they are to all 
valuable purpofes ignorant of it. This however is not 
the cafe with real Chriftians. They have a right un~ 
deritanding of the gofpel. It is in their idea the moil 
iimple, and at the fame time the mcft interefting thing 
in the world \ eafy to be apprehended, and yet full of 
infinite majefty and glory. Their knowledge is, in 
inert, experimental and practical. 

4. They keep the word. The feed once lodged in 
the heart remains there. It "is not caught away by 
the wicked one, it is not destroyed by the fcorching 
beams of perfecution, nor is it choaked by the thorns 
01 worldly care^ and pleafures. It is laid up in the un- 
deritanding, memory, and affections \ and guarded with 
attention and care, as the mo ft invaluable treafure, 
And indeed how is it imaginable that the man who 
has received the truth in the love of it, has ventured 
his everlafting all on it, and has no other ground of 
hope whatever, (hould be willing to part with this 

good 



17^ SINCERE HEARERS. 

good word of the grace of God ! fooner would he rt£ 
nounce his deareft temporal enjoyments, yea even life 
itfelf.- Nor does our Saviour, by keeping the word, 
mean only an attachment' to the leading truths of Ghri- 
itianity, and which may therefore wiih emphafis be 
called the word j he intends alfo a due regard to all 
the inftruclions and precepts of the Bible, the whole 
revealed will of -God. " O that my ways," fays Da- 
vid, " were directed to keep thy itatutes * !" And 
our Lord frequently- exhorts his difciples to exprcfs 
their love to him, by keeping his commandments f, 
and obferving his fayings t — Again, 

5. They bring forth fruit, The feed fprlngs up, 
looks green, and prcmifes a fair harveft. They pro- 
fefs the Chriftian name, and live anfwerable to iu 
Their external cc**duc~t is fober, ufeful, and honoura- 
ble y and their temper is pious, benevolent, and holy. 
The fruit they bear is of the fame nature with the feed 
whence it fprings. Their obedience is regulated by 
the word of God, as its rule \ and flows from divine 
principles, fuch as faith, hope, and love, implanted in 
their hearts, But of thefe things we mall treat more 
largely hereafter. 

6. They bring forth fruit with patience. It is a con- 
siderable time before the feed diffeminates, rifles into 
the ftalk and the ear, and ripens into fruit. It ufually 
meets with many checks in its progrefs, through incle- 
ment weather and other unfavourable circumRances. 
So that the " huibandman," as the apofxle Tames fays, 
" waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath/ 
long patience for it, until he receive the early and lat- 
ter rain ||." And thus is aptly fignified the- gradual 

progveis 

* Ptal. cxix. 5. t J^n xiv. 15; 

% Ver. 24. || James v. 7* 



SINCERE HEARERS i -£f0 

^fogrcifs of religion in the heart, the opposition it 
meets with from various quarters, and the refolution, 
ielf-denial, and perieverance fieceitary to the Chriftian 
characler. — In one word, 

7. And laftly. They bring forth fruit in different 
degrees, " forne thirty , fome iixty, and fome anliun- 
d red fold." They are none of them unfruitful, but 
the produce is more or lefs, agreeable to the kind of 
foil, the means of cultivation, and the difference of the 
feafons. 

The amount of the whole is this, Thofe hearers who 
are fincere, will derive real profit 'from the word ; 
2nd give clear proof they do fo, by bringing forth fruit, 
in various degrees, to the glory of God, and their own 
everlafung advantage. And now, in order to the ful- 
ly difcuinng this argument, we (hall, 

L Shew the neceiTity of men's hearts being made 
hoK'J} and good in order to their profiting by the word 
they hear. 

II. Defcribe the kind of fruit which perfons of this 
characler bear, and which furnithes incontenible nrocf 
that they are benefited by the word. 

III. Connder the variety there is in regard of de- 
grees of fruitfulnefs, and the reafons of it. And, 

IV. Reprefent the blevlednefs of fuch perfons, which, 
though not direcliy expreffed, is yet implied in the ge- 
neral purport of the parable. 

I. As to the neceuity of the heart's being made 
honed and good, in order to mens duly receiving the 
word and keeping it ; this will clearly appear on a lit- 
tle reflection. 

I fuppofe it will fcaree be denied, that the will 
and affections have a conuderable influence on the 
operations of the underftanding and judgment. To a 

mind, 



iSo SINCERE HEARERS, 

mind, therefore, under the tyranny of pride and plea- 
fure, pofitions that are hoftile to thefe paffions will not 
eaftly gain admiilion. Their firft appearance will cre- 
ate prejudice. And if that prejudice does not inftant- 
ly preclude all confideration, it will yet throw infupe- 
rable obstructions in the way of impartial inquiry. If 
it does not abfolutely put out the eye of reafon, it will 
yet raife mxh duft before it,*as will effectually prevent 
its perceiving the object. What men do not care to 
believe, they will take pains to perfuade themfelves is 
not true. They will employ all their ingenuity to 
find out objections, and having call them with great 
eagernefs into the oppofite fcale, to poiitive unexamin- 
ed evidence, will at length pronounce confidently 
againft the truth, and in favour of error.' Such is the 
manner of the world, and thus do men impofe upon 
themfelves. in a thoufand queftions, civil and religious, 
which thwart their inclinations. 

Now the gofpel (if the account we have given of it 
be true) is moft humiliating to the pride of the hu- 
man heart, and moil diigufting to that inordinate paf- 
fion for worldly pleafure which prevails there. Why 
then fliould it be thought ft range, that men of this 
character mould be violently precipitated by their pre- 
judices into falfe and dangerous reafonings ? To thefe 
caufes we may, without breach of charity, impute a 
crreat deal, if not the whole of that oppofition the gof- 
pel meets with in the world. Hence the crofs of 
Chrift became to the Jews a ftumbling-block, and to 
, the Greeks foolifhnefs. And hence multitudes in our 
time upon their firft hearing the gofpel are offended, 
and with the men of Capernaum fay ; " Thefe are hard 
fayings, who can hear them ?" 

If then 'the word of the kingdom be received and 

. kept 



SINCERE HEARERS » 



"kept in the manner it ought, the heart muft be firft 
made honeft and good. When once a new bias is gi- 
ven to the will and affections, and a man, from a proud, 
becomes a humble man, from a lover of this world, a 
lover of God, his prejudices againft the gofpel wilffn- 
ftantly fubfide. The thick vapours exhaled from a 
fenfual heart, which had obicured his understandings 
will difperfe ; and the light of divine truth flrine in 
upon him with commanding evidence. He will re- 
ceive the truth in the love of it. The method of fal- 
vation by a crucified Jefus, will become highly plea- 
img to him 5 and all the little objections which origi- 
nated, not in found reafon, but in difatFeClion and per-* 
verfenefs, will vaniih. And fo that divine faying cf 
our Saviour's will be found to be true, " If any man 
will do the will of God, he fhali know of the doctrine 
whether it be of God *. w 

How important then is regeneration ! How earnest- 
ly mould we pray to God to renew our will! And 
what, pains mould we take with ourfelves, to fubdue 
our flubborn prejudices and pafBons ! Thus, " laying 
apart all nlthinefs and fjperfluity of naughtinefs, and 
receiving with meeknefs the ingrafted word," we ftiall 
find it " able to fave our fouls f P The feed thus 
fown in the understanding, thus infmuating itfelf into 
the heart, and thus mingling with the affections, will 
not fail to fpring up, and in due time bring forth fruit. 
—This leads us, 

II. To defcribe the kind of fruit w-hich fuch per- 
fons will bear. It is good fruit — fruit of the fame na- 
ture with the feed whence it grows, and the foil with 
ivhich it is incorporated : of the fame nature with the 
Q~ gofpel 
* John vii. 17. f James i. 21. 



182 



SINCERE HEARERS. 



gofpel itfelf which is received in faith, and with thofe 
holy principles which are infufed by the bleffed Spirit, 
Here let us dwell a little more particularly on the 
nature and -tendency of the gofpel. " God is in Chrift 
reconciling the world to himfelf, not imputing their 
trefpaffes to them No left a penon than his own 
Son he devotes to death for their fakes. This great 
facrifice he exhibits to the view of the whole creation, 
as the moft ftriking fpe&acle of his juft refentment 
againft fin, and the moft fure pledge of his tender com- 
paflion to the guilty. The merit of this divine Savi- 
our he accepts. The plea he admits in bar of the fen- 
fence that hung over the head of the devoted criminal. 

Deliver him, (fays he,) from going down to the pit, 
for I have, found a ranfcm." He abfolves him, he 
juftifies him, he makes him everlaftingly happy. 
" Who mall lay any thing to the charge of God's 
deft ? It is God that juftifieth. Who is he that con- 
demneth ? It Is Chrift that died f So " grace 
reigns through righteoufnefs unto eternal life, by Je- 
fus Chrift our Lord O how inflexible the juftice, 

how venerable the holinefs, and how boundlefs the 
goodnefs of God ! 

And if this be the gofpel, who can hefltate a mo- 
ment upon the queftion refpecling its natural and pro- 
per tendency ? Who will dare aflert, that it is not a 
doclrine according to godlinefs ? that it does not 
teach and enforce the pureft and moft fublime mpraii- 
ty ? What man who believes it, can admit a doubt ? 
with the divine characler thus held up to his view, 
whether he ought fupremely to revere, love, and obey 
the bleffed God ? How can piety languifh and die 
amidft this fcene of wonders ? Plow can the heart, oc- 
cupied 

* % Cor, v. xp. f Rom * vi ^' 33> 34- X RoIxr » v * ?lt 



SINCERE HEARE-RS. iSj 

c-rpied with thefe fentiments, remain unfixfceptible to 
the feelings of juftice, truth 3 humanity, and benevo- 
lence ? How can a man believe himfelf to be that 
guilty, depraved, helplefs wretch, which this gofpel fup- 
poles him to be, and not be humble ? How can he be- 
hold the Creator of the world expiring in agonies orr 
the crcfs, and follow him thence a pale, breathlefs 
eorpfe to the tomb, and not feel a fovereign contempt 
for the pomps and vanities of this tranfitcry Hate ? 
How can he, in a word, fee him riling from the dead y 
triumphing over the pow 7 ers of darknefs, and afcending 
amid the lhouts of angels up into heaven ; how can 
he, I fay, be a fpe&ator of all thefe fcenes, and remain 
indifferent to his everlafting interefts r We appeal then 
to the common fenfe of mankind, whether the fcheme 
of falvation, thus exquiiitely conflrucled, is not adapt- 
ed to promote the interests of piety and holinefs ? It 
is as evident as that the fun was created, to give light 
and heat to our world , and the earth made fruitful, 
to afford food and nourishment to thofe who inhabit it a 
But to bring the matter more fully home to the 
point before us, what kind of a man is the real Chri^ 
flian ? Let us contemplate his character, and confider 
what is the general courfe of his life. Inftrudled in 
this divine doctrine, and having his heart made honeft 
and good, he will be a man of piety, integrity, and pu- 
rity. " The grace of God, which bringeth falvation, 
will teach him to deny ungodlinefs, and worldly lulls, 
and to live foberly, righteouily, and godly, in this pre- 
fent world 

As to piety. A due regard to the authority of the 
bleffed God will have a commanding influence upon 
his temper and practice. With that great Being in 

his 

* Tit. ii. it, 12, 



184 SINCERE HEARERS. 

his eye, he will aim to difcharge the duties of religi- 
ous worfhip, public and private, with fincerity, atten- 
tion, and devotion. Remembering the allegiance he 
owes to his fovereign, he will tremble at the idea of 
trending him ) and calling to mind the various ex- 
preflions of his bounty, he will feel holy joy in every 
effort to pleafe him. Relying on his pardoning mer- 
cy through Chriit, he will ingenuoufly repent of his 
2111s, and cordially return to his duty. When contem- 
plating his excellencies, he will revere him. When 
enjoying the tokens of his favour, he will delight in 
him. When chaftened by his affli cling hand, he wrll 
fubmit to him. When afiaulted by temptation, he J 
will confide in him. And when employed by him in 
any difficult and arduous fervlce^ he will rely on his 
gracious afliftance. 

As to focial duties. His conduct will be governed 
by the rule his divine Mafter has laid down, of doing 
to others as he would have them do to him. He will 
be jiiff in his dealings, faithful to his engagements, and 
fine ere in his fnendihips. He will aim to live on 
terms of peace with all, be cautious of giving offence 
to any, and gladly interpofe his bed offices, when re- 
quired, to extinguim the flames of contention, w 7 here- 
ever they are kindled. He "will feel with the afflicl- 
ed, and rejoice to have it in his powder to fmooth the 
brow of adverfity, and to pour confolation into the bo- 
fom of the forrowful. To a mean and bafe aftion, he- 
will be nobly fuperior, and in acls of generofity and 
kindnefs, his heart will exult. A flranger to fullen 
referve and corroding felfiihnefs, his foul will mingle 
with kindred fouls, and participate largely with others 
in their pleafures. In a word, by his influence and ex- 
ample, he will endeavour to promote the civil, but* 

more 



SINCERE HEARERS l8j 

more ejpecially, the fpiritual and everlalling interefb 
of mankind. — And then, 

As to perfonal duties. He will ufe the comforts o£ 
life, which he enjoys as the fruits- of divine benevo- 
lence, with temperance and moderation. The wealth 
and fplendour of the world will not be his object : on 
the contrary, he will hold them in fovereign contempt, 
when 'they dilpute the pre-eminence with intellectual 
add divine joys. Of many gratifications he will deny 
himfelf, not only that he may have it in his power to 
do good to others, but may promote his own belt inte- 
refls, by bringing fenfe into fubjeftion to reafon, and 
the world into obedience to God. His pride he will 
endeavour to mortify, by feverely itudying and cenfur- 
inghis own temper and actions, and by candidly judging 
and excuiing thofe of others. He will think foberly 
of himfelf, as he ought to think. His angry paflions 
he will reftrain and foften, and a fpirit of meeknefsj 
gentlenefs, and forbearance he will cultivate to the ut- 
moit of his power. In fine, the falvation of his foul 
will be his grand object, and the care of that will have 
the preference to every other concern whatever. 

Such are the fruits which they bring forth, who hear 
the word in the^ manner our Saviour defcribes, and 
who keep it in good and honeft hearts. They " walk 
worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called * \ 
and their " converfation is, as it becometh the gofpel 
of Chriftf." " The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, 
peace, long-fuffering. gentlenefs^ goodnefs, faith, meek- 
nefs, temperance \ againft fuch there is no law J.' 1 
Of this defcription were the primitive Chriltians, and, 
I truft, there are fome fuch to be met with in our 
times. 

0.3 But 

* Eph. iv, i» j Philip, i. 27^ % Gal. y. 22,33. 



l85 SINCERE HEARERS. 

But It is not meant by this defcription of the Chri- 
ftian to raife him above the rank of humanity, or to 
give a colouring to the pifture which it will not bear. 
He is ftill a man, not an angel. To fix the flandard of 
real religion at a mark to which none can arrive, is to 
do an injury to religion itfelf, as well as to difcourage 
the hearts of its belt friends. Abfolute perfection is 
unattainable in the prefeht life. The bell of men have 
failed in one or other, if not each, of thofe graces 
whiph have been defcribed. Abraham was the father 
of the faithful, yet his faith was more than once fhakerr 
by the violent affaults of unbelief. Jacob had an ho- 
ne ft heart, yet there was a time when he diffembled. 
Job was a pattern of patience, yet in a paroxyfm of 
' grief, he uttered words that bordered on rebellion. 
Motes was the me eke ft man on the earth, yet paflion- 
once got the maftery of him. And thofe mighty cham- 
pions in the caufe of Chriftianity, the apoftles Peter 
and Paul, were not without their failings, which the 
iutures have faithfully recorded. " In many 
tiling's we all offend Nor is there a Chriftian ii- 
vihg, however exemplary, but is difpofed, with all hu- 
mility, to acknowledge, that he every day fails in his 
duty, and that his bell fervices are difgraced with fol- 
ly and fin. 

But though perfeclion, in the flricl fenfe of the term, 
is not to be admitted, yet the fruit which every real 
Chriilian bears, is good fruit. It is "fo denominated 
by Chrirt \ and fuch it truly is, as it fp rings from right 
principles, and is conformable in general, to the rule 
laid down in the word of God. And however, the 
holinefs of the bed of men mud appear infinitely de- 
fective to the eye of Omnifcience, and therefore can 

have 

* James iii. z % 



SINCERE HEARERS* 1 8 7 

have no merit 2:1 it 5 yet there is a real obvious diffe- 
rence between the character of a man of this world, 
and that of a genuine dilciple of Chrift j one who is 
renewed by the grace of God, and one who is under 
the power of unbelief and fin. 

From this view of the kind of fruit which Chriflians 
bring forth, we are led to coniider the great variety 
there is among them in regard of degrees of fruitful- 
nefs, and the reafons of it. But this w r e muft refer to 
another opportunity, and add only a few remarks at 
prefent, on what has been faid. 

1. How gracious is that influence which the bleffed 
God exeits, to make the heart h on eft and good, and fo 
difpofe it to receive the word, and profit by it ! 

The corruption of human nature is univerfal, and 
much greater than fuperficial reafoners, and thofe who 
are little acquainted with themfelves, care to admit. 
M The heart is deceitful above all things, and defpe- 
rately wicked." Men are fet upon criminal indul- 
gences, and are averfe to the holy exercifes and fublime 
pleafures of religion. Now, how is a new turn to be 
given to the mind ? How are men to be perfuaded cor- 
dially to love that whkh they fo much diilike ? The 
reafonings of philofophy, however good, will go but a 
little way in this Luiinefs. Yea } the nobler reafonings 
of the gofpei too often prove ineffectual. How gracious 
then that influence of the Holy Spirit, by which a revo- 
lution is brought about in the mind ! It was by virtue of 
this influence that Cornelius became a devout man, and 
was difpofed to fend for Peter to preach the gofpei to 
him and his family *. It was the Lord that opened the 
heart of Lydia to attend to the things which were fpo- 
hen to her by Pau/f> And it is God, who is rich in 

?nercy^ 

* Acls x. f A&s xvi. 14, 



1 88 SINCERE HEARERS. 

mercy, that quickens all thofe who were, once dead in 
trefpajfes and Jins, bat are now alive to God and reli- 
gion *. To that grace then, by which we are regene- 
rated and faved, let us cheerfully render our nobler! 
tribute of gratitude and praife. 

2. From the nature and tendency of the gofpel y 
which has been jaft delineated, we derive a ftrong pre- 
furnptive evidence of it3 truth. 

The direct poiitive evidence of prophecy and mira- 
cle, rau-ft have its weight with every considerate per- 
fon. But when this of the fpirit and intent of the gof- 
pel is added, it cannot fail of bearing down all oppoli- 
tion before it. We appeal to the common fenfe of 
mankind, upon the queftion refpefling the holy tenden- 
cy of this divine inftitution. Let men; admit or reject 
the gofpel itfelf, let them enter into the fpirit of it, or- 
harbour prejudices againft it y Hill they cannot deny $ 
that we have here the pureft fyftem of morality, and 
that it is enforced by motives, admirably adapted to 
touch the noble ft feelings of the hearer's heart, 

Now whence could this doctrine, fo infinitely bene- 
ficial to mankind, come, if not from God ? Is it imagi- 
nable that fatan would, or could change his nature and 
views, and adopt a plan to emancipate men from his 
cruel dominion, bring them back to their allegiance to 
God, and fecure to them greater felicity, than that of 
which he had in the beginning deprived them ? Is it 
imaginable, that any of his emiflaries mould have inge- 
nuity enough, to devife a fcheme fo noble, generous, 
and god-like as this ? Or if they had, that they would 
with mighty zeal, forward a defign fo repugnant to 
their own character and views ? In fhort, would any 
man living, at the hazard of his temporal, not to fay his 

eternal 

# Eph, ii, x. 



SINCERE HEARERS. 8 ) 

eternal interefts, take pains to palm on his fellow- 
ereatuxes a known falfehood \ in order to perfuade 
them to be the very oppofite to himfelf, holy, juft, and 
good ? Whoever anfwers thefe queftions in the affirma- 
tive, muft have a ftronger faith than that required to 
make a man a Chriftian. - But if we could for a mo- 
ment fuppofe the gofpel to be a cunningly devifed fa- 
ble, it were yet worth our while, for the fake of the 
prefent advantages which refult from the belief of it, 
to embrace it. 

3. Of what importance is it that we converfe inti- 
mately with the gofpel, in order to our bringing forth 
the fruits of holinefs ! 

Admitting the gofpel to be true, the holding back 
its peculiar glories from our view, under the pretence 
of their being too myfterious to be apprehended, or too 
bright to be beheld by the feeble eye of human reafon y 
is not only abfurd, but greatly injurious to the caufe 
of real piety and genuine morality. If there be a dif- 
play of confummate wifdom, tranfcendent goodnefs, 
and immenfe power, in the contrivance and execution 
of the plan of redemption j it was no doubt brought 
forward to our view in the Scriptures, that it might 
be conlidered by- us. And the contemplation of it, if 
no other end was to be anfwered, mufl afford divine 
entertainment to a mind rightly difpofed. Are the 
perfections of Deity more ftrikingly delineated in the 
volume of the gofpel than in that of nature and provi- 
dence, and may we not reafonably expect a more fu« 
blime pleafure in the fiudy of the former than of the 
latter ? But the main thing is, that there are flronger 
incentives to be met with here to love and obedience 
than any where elfe. And fince the arguments to be 
drawn from natural religion will, go but a little way tc* 

difpofe 



^9° SINCERE HEARERS'. 

difpofe and animate us to our duty, ought We not to 
nave recourfe to thofe which are of much higher and 
nobler consideration ? 

If then we would have our hearts elevated to God 
by a devotion the moil fiiblime and ecftatic, if we 
would have our bofoms warmed with affections the raoft 
animating and generous, if we would have our wonder, 
reverence, confidence, gratitude, and delight kindle in- 
to a flame, if we would, in a word, be imitators»of God 
as dear children ^ let us " with open face behold" in 
the mirror of the gofpel " the glory of the Lord j r 
fo mall we be " changed into the fame image, frorrr 
glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord 
Let us dwell in our meditations on this divine doctrine^ 
and cordially embrace thofe exceeding great and pre- 
cious promifes which are here made us ^ fo fhall we be 
u partakers of the divine nature f." The foft and ten- 
der emotions of ingenuous forrow for fin, are both 
pleafant and falutary. If then we would keep alive in 
our breafts a penitential fenfe of fin, and a prevailing 
averfion to it : and if w r e would enjoy the heartfelt 
comfort arifing from the hope of forgivenefs \ Jet us 
often afcend mount Calvary, and furvey the bleeding 
crofs of the Son of God. "Contemplating by faitji on 
his lufferings, our eyes wRl ilream with forrow and 
fparkle with joy * y w T e (hall at once tremble and rejoice. 
Would we, again, excel in the focial virtues of juftice, 
truth, compaftion, benevolence, and friendfhip j let us 
fit at the feet of Jefus y liften to his inftruciions, bind 
his gofpel to our hearts, and make it the, man of our 
counfel. Would we, in fine, be humble, meek, patient, 
and temperate, be crucified to the world, and have the 
appetites of fenfe fubjecled to the dictates of reafon ^ 

let 

* a Cor. iii. 18. f z Pet. i. 4. 



SINCERE HEARERS, 

iet us make this divine fcience our chief fludy, and 
glory in nothing fave Jefus Chriit and him crucified, 
" The life I live in the nefn," fays the apoftle % " I 
live by the faith of the Son of God." And if Chrifti- 
ans mould thus live, minifters mould no doubt thus 
preach as well as live. Would they convert ilnners to 
God, fpread the favour of genuine piety, and promote 
the intereffs of fubftantial morality ; the gofpel mull 
be their daily fludy, their continual theme of difcourfe. 

4, And lallly. How vain a thing is mere fpecula- 
tion in religion ! 

The great end of preaching the gofpel is to make 
men holy and good j nor has God afforded us any dif- 
covery of his will, but is adapted fome way or other to 
this end. We are to judge therefore of the impor- 
tance cf a doctrine by its practical tendency. To this 
fUndard every truth is to be brought, and by it our 
zeal is to be regulated. If this idea were duly attend- 
ed to, we mould efcape the extremes of bigotry and 
neutrality : we mould neither be indifferent to the 
faith, nor value ourfelves on cur profound fpeculations. 

Ah ! my brethren, to what purpofe is it that we are 
skilled in controverfy, can decide on nice queftions, 
and draw the line to a hair between points on which 
the belt of men have differed *, if we are without that 
unction from the Holy One which diffufes a divine fa- 
vour through the foul, and adds a grateful perfume to 
cur words and actions ? " Though I have all know- 
ledge, if I have not chanty, I am nothing f." Let us 
therefore be perfuaded, having received the word of 
the kingdom, to be anxious above all things to main- 
tain a character and conduct agreeable to our holy pro- 
ftiTion. " Herein is my Father glorified, " fays our 

divir.e 

* Gal. ii. 20. f i Cor. xiii. 2. 



$9 2 SINCERE HEARERSo 

divine Saviour, " that ye bear much fruit, fo fhall ye 
be my difciples 

PART IL 

It is the chara&er of the real Chriftian we are now 
conlidering, as drawn by our Saviour in the parable of 
the fower. " Some" feeds " fell into good ground, 
and brought forth fruit, fome an hundred fold, fome 
fixty fold, fome thirty fcidf." Now by " the good 
ground," our Lord tells us, he means " thofe who in 
an honeft and good heart, having heard the werd, keep 
it, and bring forth fruit with patience Having 
briefly explained thefe words we have propofed — to 
fhew the neceffity of men's hearts being made honef! 
and good, in order to their profiting by the word they 
hear — to defcribe the kind of fruit which perfons of 
this character bear — to confider the variety there is in 
regard of degrees of fruitfulnefs, and the reafons of it 
—and to reprefent the bleffednefs of fuch perfons, 
which though not expreffed is yet implied in the gene- 
ral purport of the parable. We have difcourfed on 
the two firft heads, and proceed now, 

III. To confider the great variety there is among 
Chriftians in regard of degrees of fruitfulnefs, and the 
reafons of it. 

Seed fown on good ground brings forth fruit — fome 
an hundred, fome Jixty, and fome thirty fold. Very 
aftoniftiing inftances of fertility we meet with in natu- 
ral hiftory j|. But though fuch inftances occur not 

in 

* John xv. 8. f Matth. xiii. 8, i Luke viii. 15. 
|| Of the extraordinary fruitfulnefs of corn in Africa, Pliny 
gives us the following -account : " Tritico nihil eft fertilius : hoc 
«< e i na tura tribuit, qucniam eo maxime alat hominem : utpote 
" cum e modlo, fi fit aptum foliim, quale in Byzacio Africse cam- 



SINCERE HEARERS* 

in the ordinary courfe of things, it is yet certain that 
in all ages and in all countries, the produce of the earth 
is various. And this variety is commonly imputed to 
difference of foil, or difference in the mode of culti- 
vation, or difference of climates and feafons. In like 
manner it is a fact, that the fruits which Chriftians 
bring forth, though in the general of the fame good 
quality, are very different in quantity : fome abound 
more in good works than others. And if the reafons 
of this are enquired into, we (hall find them fomewhat 
fimilar to thofe juft mentioned reflecting the produce 
of the earth. Let us firit cftabiilh the fact, and then 
examine the reafons of it. 

FIRST, as to the fact, that there are degrees of 
fruitfulnefs, a little obfervation will fufficiently prove it« 

Fruitfulnefs may be confidered in regard both of the 
devout affections of the heart, and the external actions 
of the life \ in each of which views it will admit of 
degrees. As to the former, that is piety, it is certain 
it may be in a more flourishing Hate in one man than 
in another. Bat comparifons here are dangerous, if 
indeed they may be allowed of at alL Religion is a 
perfonal thing, a matter that lies between God and a 
man's own foul. And as we mould not dare to pro- 
nounce definitively upon any one's Hate towards God, 
fo we mould be careful how we give the preference to 
one religious character before another. In thefe mat- 
ters we may be, and often are, very much mifxaken. 

R , And 

u po, centeni quinquageni irfodii reddantur. Mifit ex eo loco 
u Divo Augufto procurator ejus ex uno grano (vix credibile die- 
" tu) quadringenta paucis minus germina, extantque de ea re epi- 
si ftolse. Mifit et Neroni limiliter cccxt ftipulas ex uno grano.'* 



Plin. Lib, XYIIL Cap. id; 



S94 SINCERE HEARER.?. 

And I have no doubt but that at the great day manj 
will be firft, who in the Opinion of their fellow-mortals 
were laft , and many will be laft, who were firfL 
And, however we may be at liberty to judge more 
freely of their a£tions, yet to infer certainly from 
them to the ftate of mens hearts, is going beyond our 
line, fince the comparative difference between the good 
works of one Chriftian and another, may be owing to 
caufes very diftincl from that of the inward temper of 
the mind, as we mall have occafion hereafter to mew. 
All this I fay, to check thai forward and wanton fpe- 
culation which too much prevails among profefling 
Chriftians, and is 'a difgrace to religion. " Jndge 
not," fays our Saviour, " left ye be judged 
When we fee any rich in good works, we are juftifted 
in pronouncing, that religion is in a profperous ftate 
in their hearts. And where we fee any lefs fruit- 
ful, charity mould teach us tc impute the difference 
to any other poflible caufe, rather than that of a de- 
clension in vital godlinefs. 

But to return. It is with good works themfelves 
that we are here concerned. And it will be readily 
admitted,' that forae abound more in the fruits of ho- 
linefs than others. So it is in our time, and fo it has 
been in every age of the world. The variety is pro- 
digious. What multitudes are there among thofe who 
call themfelves . Chriftians, of whom we can collect lit- 
tle more from our obfervation of -them, than that they 
live harmlefs, fober, and regular. lives. Their obedi- 
ence is rather negative than pofitive. They bring no 
difhonour on their profeffion, nor yet are they very 
ornamental and exemplary. Others are ftrielly con- 
fcientious and circumfpeet in their walk, far removed 

from 

# Mat. vii. i. 



SINCERE HEARERS, 1 95 

from all appearance of gaiety and diffipatlon, and re- 
markably ferious and conftant in their attendance upon 
religious duties \ but. for Want of fweetnefs of temper^ 
or of that fprightlinefs and freedom which a lively faith 
infpires, the fruit they bear is but iTender, and of an 
unpleafant flavour. There are thole, further, in whom 
fcrioufnefs and cheerfulnefs are happily united, and 
whofe conduct is amiable in the view of all around 
them y but then, moving in a narrow fphere, and pof- 
fefling no great zeal or refolution, their lives are di~ 
ftinguilhed by few remarkable exertions for the glory 
of God, and the good of others. And again, there 
are a number, whofe bofoms, glowing with flaming 
zeal and ardent love, are rich in good works, never 
weary in well-doing, and full of the fruits of rights 
eoufnefs, to the praife and the glory of God. 

Some we fee, in the early part of their profeffion, 
mounting up with wings as eagles j by and bye, their 
ardour fomewhat abating, they run in the ways o£ 
God \ and after a while, yet further declining in their 
vigour, they can only walk in the path to heaven : 
they however do not turn back. Others, on the con- 
trary, we fee contending with the weaknefs and fro- 
wardnefs of childhood, then collecting the ftrength and 
vivacity of youth, fo proceeding to the fteadinefs and 
judgment of riper years, and at length doling their 
days a mid ft' all the rich fruits of wifdom and experi- 
ence. In the garden of God there are trees of diffe- 
rent growth. Some newly planted, of (lender ftature 
and feeble make, which yet bring forth good, though 
but little fruit. And here and there you fee one that 
out-tops all the reft, whofe roots fpread far and wide, , 
and whofe boughs are laden in autumn with rich and 
large fruit. Such variety is there among Chriftians. 

And- 



19-6 SINCERE HEARERS, 

And variety there is too in the different fpecies of 
good works. Some are eminent in this virtue, and 
iome in that \ while perhaps a few abound in every 
good word and work. 

Whoever confults the hiftory of religion in the Bi- 
ble, will fee all that has been faid exemplified in the 
characters and lives of a long fcroll of pious men, 
- Not to fpeak here of the particular excellencies that 
diftihguiflied thefe men of God from each other, it is 
enough to cbferve, that fome vaftly outmone others. 
The proportions of a hundred, fixty, and thirty fold, 
might be applied to patriarchs, prophets, judges, kings, 
apoftles, and the Chriftians of the primitive church. 
Between, for inftance, an Abraham that offered up 
his only fon, and a righteous Lot, that lingered at the 
. call of an angel. A Mofes, that led the Ifraelites 
through all the perils of the Red Sea, and the wilder- 
jiefs, to the borders of Canaan, and. a pious Aaron, 
who yet on an occafion temporised with that perverfe 
people. A Jofnua, who trampled on the necks of ido- 
latrous princes, and a Sampfon, who betrayed his weak« 
nefs, arnidft aftonifhing efforts of miraculous ftrength* 
A David, who was the man after God's own heart, 
and an Abijah, in whom was found fome good thing 
towards the Lord God of Ifrael. A Daniel, who was 
greatly beloved of God, and a Jonah, who, though he 
feared God, thought he did well to be angry. In a 
word, between the great apoftle of the Gentiles, that 
flaming feraph in the Chriftian hemifphere, and a ti- 
mid unbelieving Thomas. — But let us now, 

SECONDLY, Enquire into the grounds and rea« 
fons of this difparity among Chriftians, reflecting the 
fruits of holinefs. Thefe are of very different confi- 
deration. Many of them will be found to have no 

connection 



SINCERE HEARERS* I^JT 

connection at all with the inward temper of the mind $ 
a reflection, therefore, upon them, will give energy to 
what has been faid, in regard of the charity we ought 
to exercife in judging of others. Let us begin then, 

I. With men's worldly circumjlances. 

Much wealth rarely falls to the lot of good people : 
it does however in fome inifances. Admitting, then^ 
that the rich and the poor Chriftian poffefs an equal 
fli are of the grace of God^ this difference in regard of 
their temporal affairs will create a difference in the 
number, variety, and fplendour of their good works. 
The affluent Chriltian you will fee pouring his bounty 
on all around him, hofpitably throwing open his doors 
to the ftranger, wiping away the falling tear of the 
widow, providing for the relief of her fatherlefs chil- 
dren, propping up a houfe finking into poverty, con- 
tributing generoufly to charitable inititutions, diftribu- 
ting ufeful books among his poor neighbours, affixing 
rninifters in their labours, and forwarding, in various 
ways, the general caufe of truth, liberty, and religion. 
Thefe are good works which cannot fail, when known, 
of exciting admiration. When known, I fay, becaufe 
the modeft piety of him who does them, will labour to* 
caff a veil over them, and induce him humbly to ac- 
knowledge, when he has done all, that he is, in regard 
of God, an unprofitable fervant. 

But the poor Chriltian can render few, if any of 
thefe fervices, to his fellow-creatures. The utmofl he 
can perhaps do, is, by his daily labour, to feed and 
s cloath his family, and to provide things honeft in the 
fight of all men. His works are of a different kind ? 
the works of induftry, contentment, fubmiffion and pa- 
tience. He moves in a narrow fphere, beyond which, 
however, he often looks with a compaffionate and be- 

R 3 nevolea^ 



I98 SINCERE HEARERS. 

nevolent eye, obliged to fubftitute the will Inftead of 
the deed. 

2. Opportunity Is another ground of diflinc"Hon among 
Chriflians, in regard o£ fruit fulnefs, 

By opportunity, I mean occafions of ufefulnefs, 
which arife under the particular and -immediate, direc- 
tion of divine Providence^ A man mail fometimes be 
fo lituated, and fuch unexpected events take place, as 
that, by a feafonable exertion of his abilities, he (hall 
be capable of doing great fer vice to the caufe of vir- 
tue and religion. The ftations afligned by.Brovidencs 
to fome Ghrirtians are particularly favourable to the 
idea of glorifying God, and promoting the good of fo- 
ciety. Moving in elevated fpheres, they have nume* 
ious and powerful connections, and of confequence 
great weight and influence. A Daniel mall have fucli 
eafy accefs to the prefence of a mighty tyrant, as mail 
enable him to whifper the moll: beneficial counfels in 
his ear } and an apoftle, by being brought in chains 
before a no lefs powerful prince,, (hall have an oppor- 
tunity of defending the caufe of his divine Mafter, in 
the moil eiTential . manner. Chriftians^ if fuch, thera- 
be, that are admitted at any time into, the courts of 
fovereigns, into the circles of the great, or into tha 
counfels of the wife, may do eminent, fervice to reli- 
gion by their reafonings, admonitions, and examples. 
Nor is there any ft ati on of life wherein a good man is 
not now and then called, . by fome extraordinary cir* 
cumftance in providence, to fpecial offices of piety and 
charity j fuch as inftmc~ting the ignorant, reproving 
the profane, guiding the doubtful, reclaiming the vi* 
clous, edifying the weak, and comforting the diitreffed. 
But thefe opportunities of ufefulnefs occur more fre- 
quently in fome fituations than others, and of confe= 

(juence 



SINCERE HEARERS. I99 

quence the fruitfulnefs of Tome Chriftians is greater 
than that of others. 

3. Mental abilities have a considerable influence in 
this matter. 

What mining talents do fome good men poffefs ! 
They have extent! ve learnings great knowledge of 
mankind, much fagacity and penetration, fmgular for- 
titude, a happy manner of addrefs, flowing language, 
and a remarkable fweetnefs of temper. Thefe, and 
other amiable qualities of a natural kind, uniting with 
a deep fenfe of religion, and a warm zeal for the glory 
of God, give them the advantage in point of general 
ufefulnefs in fociety above mod around them, They 
can detect error, and defend the truth, frown Upon 
vice, and allure men to virtue, afTert the caufe of reli- 
gion, and repel the calumnies of infidels, after a rnarr- 
ner not to be attempted by others, who yet poffefs the 
fame piety and zeal with themfelves. Their lingular 
talents open a large field of ufefulnefs to them, drav/ 
the attention of the public, give them a commanding 
authority over popular prejudices, and with the blef- 
fing of God fecure to them no fmall fuccefs in the ar- 
duous bufineis of reforming mankind. 

The apoitles of our Lord Jefus Chrift, endowed 
with the gifts of knowledge and utterance, went abroad 
into all the earth, and brought forth fruit an hundred 
fold y while private Chriftians, whom they exhorted 
co covet earneftly better gifts than thefe, could do lit- 
tle more, deftitute of popular talents, than recommend 
the holy religion they profefled, by their unblameable 
lives. And lince their time, there have been men pof- 
felfed of extraordinary gifts, who have laboured with 
uncommon fuccefs in the vineyard \ while their bre- 
thren of inferior abilities, but equal piety ? have com- 
plained 



200 



SINCERE HEARERS. 



plained," in the language of the 'prophet, " Who hath 
believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the 
Lord revealed * ?" To fome,- the great houfeholder 
gives ten talents, and to others five \ nor does he ex- 
pect the like returns from the latter, as from the for* 
mer. He is riot a hard matter, whatever the flothful 
« fervant might pretend, reaping where he has not low- 
ed, and gathering where he has not ftrawed f . 

4. The different means of religion that good men 
enjpy, are another ocGafion of their different -degrees of 
fruitfulnefs. 

If the gofpel is adapted, as w T e have Ihewn it is, to 
promote holinefs, and animate men to generous and no- 
ble aft ions, it follows, that the more clearly it is dif- 
penfed, the greater abundance of thefe good effects _ of 
it is to be expected. Upon this principle, Chriflians 
have the advantage of thofe, who fiouriihed under the 
Patriarchal and Jewifh difpenfations, the prefent being 
far preferable, in point of light and glory, to the for- 
mer. But it is the difference among Chriflians thern- 
felves, we have here chiefly in view. And the diffe- 
rence is coniiderable, for though the gofpel. is every 
where one and the fame thing, yet the manner in which- 
it is adminiitered is various. Seme feafons and cli- 
mates, and fome modes of cultivation, are more favour- 
able to the fruits of the earth than Others. So it is 
here. God be flows different gifts on different mini- 
tters j it feems natural therefore, to expeft, in the ordi- 
nary courfe of things, that they who lit under a angu- 
larly edifying and animating minittry, mould be more 
exemplary and ornamental in their lives than others. 
They have the truths of religion fet in a more clear 
and convincing light, and the motives to obedience ur- 
ged 

* Ifa.liii. i f \ Matt. xxv. 



SINCERE HEARERS, 2£ E 

ged on them in a more lively and forcible manner than 
fome others j and therefore ought to excel in the fruits 
of holinefs. 

The like alfo may be obferved, of peculiarly ftrik- 
ing events of providence, which happen to fome Chri- 
flians. Thefe, with the bleffing of God, become the 
happy means of their growth in grace. What a rapid 
progrefs do they make in the divine life, amidft thefe 
extraordinary cultivations ! How do they abound in 
love and good works ! While their fellow Chrifiians, 
who go on in a fmooth path, feldom or ever tried in the 
furnace of affliction, or emptied from veffel to veffel j 
give few diftinguiihing proofs of flaming zeal for the 
glory of God, and difinterefted benevolence towards 
mankind. Hence our Lord fays, fpeaking of himfelf 
as the vine, and of his Father as the hufbandman : 
u Every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that 
it may bring forth more fruit * plainly intimating, 
that, as there are degrees of fruitfulnefs among Chrifti- 
ans, fo the increafe, remarkable in fome inftances, is 
owing to the extraordinary meafures divine Providence 
is pleafed to take with them. — From hence we are led 
to obferve, 

5. That the comparative differentiate of religion in 
one Chiiftian and another, is the more immediate and 
direct caufe of their different fruitfulnefs. 

It is not our province, as I faid before, to enter into 
mens hearts, to examine what paffes there, and com- 
paring their fuppofed inward tempers and feelings, to 
pronounce upon their refpe&ive characters. But this 
"plain general truth we may affirm, leaving every one 
to apply it to himfelf, that, in proportion as religion is 
on the advance or decline in a man's heart, fo w^ill his 

external 

* John xv. 2. 



20 2' SINCERE HEARERS, 

external conduit be more or lefs exemplary. If fajtn^ 
love, and joy, are in lively exercife, there will be cor- 
refpondent expreffions of thcfe tempers in his life. 
Deeply irnpreffed with the reality of future and eteciial 
things, warmed at his very heart with the love of God 
in Chriit, and fweetly refrefhed with a fenfe of the di- 
vine favour he will be ftri&ly conscientious in all his 
intercourfes with others, temperate in the ufe of world- 
ly enjoyments, patient under his afflictions, ready to 
diftribute to-the wants of others, and vigorous in his 
endeavours to advance the glory of God, and promote 
the belt interefts of mankind, 

But if thefe divine principles are in a weak, fickly 
declining Hate, the torpor that has feized on his mind 
» will arTeCt his external conduct. He will be liftlefs,? 
flothful, and neutral, and though he does not abfolute* 
ly ceafe to bring forth fruit, yet the fruit he does bear 
will be inconfiderable in quantity, and of no very plea- 
fing flavour. This matter is fo clear, that I need take 
no further pains either to explain or prove it. But 
while .we apply this reafoning, with all wholefome fe~ 
verity to ourfelves, I mull again caution you againft 
the great evil, of to'o haftily judging of others from ex- 
ternal appearances. The good works of fome Chrifti- 
ans are concealed, by an impenetrable veil, from oue 
' view. But fuppofing they really are few, yet if their 
fewnefs may be imputed to either of the caufes before* 
mentioned, let us not be fond of fetting it down to this 
caufe, the molt unfavourable of all, namely, an effen- 
tial defeft, in the fpirit and power of religion. — To 
what has been faid, I have only to add one other rea- 
fon of this variety among Chriftians, and that is, 

6. And laftly, The greater or lefs effufion of divine 
influences* 

Xix 



SINCERE EEARERS. 20$ 

regard of hu&andry, how much the largenefs of 
the crop depends upon the favourablenefs of the feafon, 
we have had occalion to ihew ; Indeed without the aid 
of the fun and dew, and the blefling of God, though 
the ground were ever fo well manured and fown, -there 
would be no crop at all, The Lord blej/ed Ifaac ; and 
fo having/owed in the /and oi the PhililHnes, he recei- 
ved in the fame year an hundred fold ' *. In like man- * 
ner, clear as it is, that every Chriftian ought to bring 
forth fruit, it is alio evident, that his endeavours will 
be vain without the divine afliftance and blefling. Bat 
where more than ordinary fruits are brought forth, as 
•in the instances of Corns eminent men that rrivght be 
mentioned \ it would be flrange if we did not acknow- 
ledge, that a more than ordinary meafure of the Holy 
Spirit is pcured upon fuch perfons. The noble ex- 
ploits of an illuftrious army of confeffbrs and -martyrs, 
who have contended with principalities and powers, 
and gained a complete victory over them, are only to 
be accounted for on this principle. And if their good 
works are more numerous and brilliant than thofe of 
the common clafs of ■•Chriftians, if they have brought 
forth fruit a hundred fold, and theie only iixty ; the 
former gratefully afcribe their fiiperiority to the ^race 
of God, while both the one and the other humblv ac- 
knowledge, they have not improved their talents to 
the degree that might be expected. 

Thus have -we ft ate d the fa el, refpecting the diffe- 
rent degrees of fruitfulnefs, remarkable among Chrifti- 
ans, and confidered the true grounds and reafons of it. 
— It now remains that we reprefent, 

IV. The bleiTednefs of thofe, who. hearing the word, 
and keeping it in honeft and good hearts, bring forth 

the 

* Gen. xxvL iz. 



204 SINCERE HEARERS. 

the fruits of holinefs. This, as we have obferved, is 
implied, though not exprefled, in the parable. And~i£ 
we confider the pleafure that accompanies ingenuous 
obedience — the evidence which thence arifes to the 
uprightness of the heart — the refpeft in which a man 
of this character is held among his fellow Chriftians — 
and the rewards he (hall hereafter receive at the hands 
of the Lord Jefus Chrift, we fhail readily pronounce 
him a happy man. 

i. As to the pleafure that accompanies ingenuous 
obedience. 

" Great peace have they," fays David, " who love 
thy law, and nothing fhall offend them *." And So- 
lomon affures us, that " the ways of wifdom," that is 
of Jiolinefs, " are ways of pleafantnefs, and all her 
paths are peace f Much might be faid here, of the 
pleafures of inward religion, the comforts which arife 
from communion with God, a fenfe of his favour, and 
the hope of eternal life. But I have my eye at pre- 
fent, not fo much on the contemplative and devotional, 
as the praclical part of religion. And can any one 
doubt, that a regular attention to duty upon right prin- 
ciples, is accompanied with pleafure ? Multitudes in- 
deed {brink back from it. They account time fpent 
in the worfhip of God, long and tedious ; acts of com- 
panion and benevolence, if not of juftice, a fevere tax 
upon pleafure and property •, and all reft Taints laid 
upon their exorbitant pafiions and appetites, a moft 
intolerable burden. But if they had a tafte for com- 
munion with the great eft and belt of Beings, if they 
had hearts fufceptible of humane and generous feelings, 
and if they knew the value of temperance and modera- 
tion how would they love the habitation of God's 

houfe, 

* Ffal. cxix. 165. t Prov. iii. 17/ 



SINCERE HEARERS. 205 

houfe, and the place where his honour dwelleth ! how 
would they rejoice in doing good to the fouls and bo- 
dies of their fellow-creatures ! and with what fatisfac- 
tion and cheerfulnefs would they daily partake of the 
bounties of Providence. 

Such is the character of the real Chriftian ; how 
happy a man therefore mud he be ! I mean, when he 
acts in character \ for it mult not be denied, that his 
heart is fometimes out of tune for devotional exercifes, 
that he is not always alike difpofed to benevolent ex- 
ertionsj and that his appetites and paffions too often re- 
bel again ft his prevailing inclinations, though they gain, 
not the abfolute mattery over them. And hence all 
that pain he feels at his heart, and all that fadnefs 
which appears on his countenance. It is not his bring- 
ing forth fruit that makes him unhappy, but his bring- 
ing forth no more fruit, and, in his own modeft appre- 
henrlon, fcarce any at all. Holinefs and happinefs are 
intimately connected : were that perfecl and unmixed, 
this would be fo too. Eut, though the beft obedience 
the Chriftian can render, hath no merit in it, and he 
would reprobate the moft diftant idea of pleading it at 
the tribunal of juftice j yet furely it hath its pleafures. 
Make trial of it, Chriftian. You have made trial. 
Tell me then, you who rank among the moft unfruit- 
ful of Chrift's real difciples, whether you have not tatt- 
ed a fweetnefs in holy duties, a fatisfaction in acts of 
brotherly-kindnefs, and a pleafure in the moderate ufe 
of worldly enjoyments, that infinitely exceeds all the 
boafted joys of profane and wicked men ? Would you 
then be happy ? go and bring forth fruit, do all the 
good you can, and give God the glory. 

2. Fruitfulnefs affords a noble proof of a man's up- 
S rightcelsj 



206 SINCERE HEARERS 

rightnefs, and fo tends indiredtty, as well as direcliy, to 
promote his happinefs. 

With what anxiety does the fincere, but timorous 
Chriftian often put the following queftions to hinifelf : 
— " Am I renewed by the grace of God ? Have I in- 
" genuoufly repented of my fins ? Do I truly believe 
" in the Lord Jefus Chrift ? Is there a fpark of real 
love in my breaft to the divine Saviour ? And may 
u I venture to reckon myfeif among the number of his 
" difciples ?" Important queftions ! Our comfort is* 
much concerned in obtaining fatisfaclory anfwers to 
them. But how do we expect to have them anfwer- 
cd ? There is fuch a thing as " God's Spirit bearing 
witnefs with our fpirits, that we are the children of 
God But the asking in a right manner, the tefti- 

xnony of God's Spirit, implies, the paying a due regard 
to the teflimony of our own fpirit. And by what evi- 
dence are we to judge of the truth cr faliity of this 
teftimony, but that which js laid down in the word of 
God ? And what is that ? — It is our bearing fruit, 
" Herein is my Father glorified," fays Chriit, " that 
ye bear much fruit, fo mall ye be my difciples," or fo 
ihall ye give proof that ye are my difciples f . " Here- 
by we know that we know him, if we keep "his com- 
mandments," that is, if we aim to keep his command- 
ments %. Again, " Every one that doeth rightecuf- 
nefs is born of God jj." 

And now, if, from a regard to the authority of God, 
and a fenfe of our infinite obligations to his grace, we 
make it our aim to bring forth the fruits of holinefs , 
though thefe fruits m^y not be a hundred, or fixty, but 
only thirty fold j though, through a combination of 

circumitances, 

* Rom. viii. 16. , j- John x v. 3. 

% Johnii. 3. [| Johnii, 2p. 



SINCERE HEARERS, 2,0*} 

ch cumuartces. they may be very inconiixferable indeed : 
yet we poSefs an authentic teftinieiry, that we are the 
genuine dilKpIes of Ghrift. And the knowledge of 
this tends direclly to promote our peace and happinefs, 
But what a further accefhon of rlrength does this evi- 
dence receive, from that abundance of fruitfulnefs, 
which diftinguliTies fome characters from others ! An 
apoRle, who brought forth an hundred fold, confcious 
that he acted from the pureft motives, and receiving 
the immediate teftimony cf God's Spirit 5 could not 
fail of having every doubt refpecting his ftate removed^ 
and fo enjoying a full aiTurance of faith, And how un- 
fpeakable mufl his happinefs have been ! Who that 
fears God does net envy him of the fweet peace, the 
abiding fatisfaclion, and triumphant joy, he poffeffed ? 

Should not this then fcrve as one motive, among ma- 
ny others, to animate us to love and obedience ? And 
if we are fo happy as to arrive at an aiTurance of hope, 
that fruitfulnefs, which may have contributed to clear 
up our evidence of intereft in the favour of God, will 
not footh our vanity, but be humbly and thankfully 
acknowledged to have originated from the feafonable 
influence and afiiftance of divine grace. View the 
Chiiftian, then, walking in the light of God's counte- 
nance, and having the joyful teftimony of his own con- 
fcience, that in fimplicity and godly fmcerity he has 
his converfation in the world ) and fay, whether he is 
not of all men the moft happy ? 

3. The eiteem, too, in which he is held among hisv 
fellow Chiiilians, mufl contribute not a little to his 
comfort. - - 

To be honoured and loved by wife and good men, is 
a great bleinug. This bleiTing we may covet, and if 
we bring forth fruit we (ball enjoy it. The world in- 
deed, 



210 SINCERE. HEARERS, n 

of the whole world. So fliall he and they be caught 
up with the afcending Saviour, to the abodes of blifs 
. above, and there be for ever with the Lord. 

And now, all thefe things laid together, how great 
is the blefTednefs of the fruitful ChrifHan ! What re- 
mains then, but that we take fire at thefe confidera- 
tions, and refolve, in a humble dependence on divine 
grace, that we will endeavour to outdo each other in 
love and good works ! Has our divine Matter redeem- 
ed us with his precious blood, obtained the Holy Spi- , 
rit to renew and fanftify us, bleffed us with the means 
of grace, fet before us his own perfect example, and 
given us fuch exceeding great and precious promifes ? 
And mall we content ourfeives, after all this expence 
he has been at for our good, with making him the re- 
turn of a few cold heartlefs fervices, for the promoting 
his honour and intereft-in the world ? No, Chriftian ! 
fuch conduct would be molt ungrateful and difingenu- 
ous. Let me befeech you then, c< my beloved bre- 
thren, to be ftejiaft, unrnov'eable, always abounding in 
the work of the Lord ; forafmuch as ye know that 
your labour is not in vain in the Lord *.'? And as 
the word of the kingdom is the feed whence fruitful- 
>iefs is to be expected, let us receive it with meeknefs^ 
remembering that Ci it is able to fave our fouls f 
And let our Saviour's own exhortation, with the ex- 
planation and improvement of which we mall clofe 
thefe difcourfes, have its due w r eight with us all, 
" Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." 

* i Cor. xv. 58. f James i. 21. 



DIS. 



DISCOURSE VL 



THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION EX- 
PLAINED AND ENFORCED, 



Mat. xiii. 9. 
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 

IN fuch manner does our Saviour clofe the parable 
of the lower, exhorting his hearers with great 
earneftnefs and affection *, to well weigh and confide r 
what he had faid. The fame phrafe occurs in other 
parts of fcripturef; and w T as well adapted, as here 
ufed by our Lord, to convey the following ideas to the 
minds of the people — that the difcourfe he had been 
delivering was parabolical — that the truth veiled un- 
der the parable was moft important — that their feri- 
oufly confidering it was abfolutely neceffary to their 
profiting by it — and that they were not to complain it 
was unintelligible, for that ; if they were not benefited 

by 

* T«v1# >.tym t<pam — So Luke introduces the text, chap, 
viii. ver. S — which words Dr Doddridge thus paraphrafes, *' When 
*' he had faid thefe things, he cried out with a louder voice than 
45 before," See. 

f AJatt. xi. 15.^-xiii, 43. Pvev. U.&7, ir, 17, 29.— iii, 6. 13, 
2 %» — xiii,p. 



212 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

by his mftruffions, the fault would be In the perverfe- 
nels of their wills, rather than in any defect in their 
natural or mental powers. Let us briefly elucidate 
thefe -remarks, before we proceed to the main point in 
view, which is the explaining and enforcing the great 
duty of confidering the word preached. r _ 

1. Our Lord evidently. meant, by the language of 
the text, to remind his hearers, that it was an apologue, 
fable, or parable, He had been delivering. 

This mode of mil ruction obtained much In ancient 
times and eaftern countries, as we have had oecafion to 
obferve before \ and it was ufual too, either at the be- 
ginning or clofe of the difc'ourfe, to intimate as much to 
the audience: So that out 3aviour r s audience would 
have been inexcufable, had they gone away pretend- 
ing, that all he had been doing was to give them a 
lecture in hufbandry, or to amufe them with an idle 
tale of fowing and reaping, matters they well enough 
undent ood before. Indeed from our Lord's general 
character and manner of preaching, they might natu- 
rally enough prefume fomething more than this was in- 
tended : but his faying thus at the clofe,," Who hath 
ears to hear, let him hear ^ or, in other words, re- 
member all this is a parable, was putting the matter 
beyond a doubt. 

2. By this mode of exprernon they were further re- 
minded,, chat the'feveral truths veiled under this para- 
ble were mo ft interefiing and important. 

It is as much as if he had faid, " Think not I have 
14 been trifling with you. No. The inftiucticn juft 
" given you is of the laft confequence to your p relent 
" and future welfare. I am a divine teacher. I come 
" to infbrm your underflandings, and do good to your 
" hearts. And be allured, if it is. of importance to the 

J 1 prefervatioa 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 21$ 

u prefervation of animal life, that your grounds are 
iL cultivated and bring forth fruit at the proper fealcn , 
4i it is of infinitely greater importance; that your fouls 
44 are renewed by the grace of God, and that ye are 
M rich in good works. " 

3. The direct purport of the exhortation was, to 
perfuade them to connder what they had heard. 

i% Think rot," as if he had faid, " it is enough that 
" ye have heard my words. There is a further duty 
" lying upon you. Recollect my fayings. Meditate 
" upon them. Confider the truths couched under 
" them. Lay them up in your memories and hearts. 
" Endeavour to get the better of your prejudices. 
" Pray to God to open your understandings and change 
" your hearts. And reduce what has been faid to 
" practice. 11 Thus does cur Lord teach his hearers 
the abfolute neceffity of ferioufly considering the word, 
in order to their profiting by it. — Once more. 

4. He in efTecl tells them, that if they were not be- 
nefited by what they heard, the fault was rather in their 
will than their undemanding. " Who hath ears to 
hear, let him hear." 

Here is a clear diftincHon obferved between the na- 
tural and moral powers of the foul, that is, the under- 
ftanding and judgment on the one part, and the will and 
affections on the other. As to the former, enervated 
and broken as cur reafoning powers are, men in gene- 
ral cannot pretend that they are abfolutely incompetent 
to consideration. If indeed they were wholly deilitute 
of a capacity, of perceiving, comparing, and reflecting; 
it were as great a folly to reafon with them, as it would 
be to utter articulate founds in the ear of him who is 
irrecoverably deaf. How abfurd to fay to him that 
has loll the organ of hearing; hear ! And how abfurd 

to 



2l5 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

*f to take no thought before hand what they fhould 
fpeak, nor to premeditate, for it fhould be given them 
in that hour, what they mould fpeak *." But who 
does not fee that this was an extraordinary cafe, and 
that therefore, for any man to fuppofe he is juftified 
by this paffage in the neglect of premeditation, is not 
only to reafon falfeiy, but in direft defiance of the 
apoftle's admonition to Timothy juft mentioned, and 
many others of the like nature ? Let us then, my bre- 
thren, whofe duty it is to inftruct others, endeavour 
to get all the knowledge we can, and be confcientiouf- 
ly laborious in our preparations for the fervice of the 
fancluary. This is the voice of common fenfe, of 
Scripture, and of all confederate people who wifh to 
be benefited by our inftructions. 

2. Care alfo is to be taken about the manner, as 
well as the matter of our difcourfc. 

It is beneath the dignity of his character, who 
brings a meffage from heaven, and treats with men on 
fubjeds of the higher! concernment, to ufe the enti- 
cing words of man's wifdom, or to affect the pompous 
language of vain rhetoricians. But, while he is care- 
ful to avoid a ilyle that is bombatt and tumid, and in- 
deed every thing that looks like affectation, he mould 
be cautious how he degenerates into the oppofite ex- 
treme. Rude and barbarous language, ill-managed 
metaphors, trite flories, quaint conceits, and a long 
train of other trifling puerilities, too common among 
feme in our time \ not only render the man contemp- 
tible who uies them, but have a very pernicious efleel: 
upon the generality of hearers. Their judgment is 
perverted, inftead of being informed ; their ears are 
. tickled, inftead of their hearts being made better } 

and, 

# Mark xiii. 12. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 21^ 

and, to fay the bell, if they'are not difgufted, they are 
yet only amufed. An eafy plain natural Style, alike 
remote from pedantry and barbariim, heft becomes the 
authority and importance of divine truth ; <4 found 
fpeech that cannot be condemned*.'' 

Nor is it to edification, for the fake of pleafing a few 
politer hearers, to throw our difcourfes into a declama- 
tory effaying form, and affectedly difguife the method 
we lay down to curfelves. We mould ever remember 
we arc fpeaking to the plained capacities \ and as the 
arranging our ideas properly is neceffary to our being 
understood, fo the giving each division of our difcourfe 
its denomination of number, has a happy effecT: to affile 
the attention and memory of our hearers. 

And then as to voice and action, having taken pains 
with ourfelves to correct what is manifestly improper 
and difgufting *, it may be fafely left to nature, and 
the kind of impulfe excited by the Subject on which we 
are treating, to guide us Spontaneously in thefe matters. 
Clearly understanding what we fay, and deeply feeling 
its truth and importance, our manner will be, not trif- 
ling, dull, and formal, but grave, fenfihle, and enliven- 
ing. — Which leads me to obferve, 

3. That we mould look well to our aims and views 
in difcourfing of the great things of God. 

The end we prppofe in any matter, will have a con- 
siderable influence on the means we ufe to attain it. 
The more interesting our object is, the more arliduous 
will be our endeavours to corapafs it. Now the glory 
of God, and the falvation of immortal fouls, are the 
moil noble and important ends we can poffibly have in 
view. The more therefore our minds are occupied 
1 with thefe ideas, and the more deeply our hearts are 

T ^ffefted 

* Tit, ii. S. 



2l8 ■ THE DUfY OF CONSIDERATION 

affeclednvith them, the greater pains we (hall take to 
foe matters of the fubje&s we treat of, and to difcufs 
them in fuch manner as mall be to the edification of 
thofe who hear us. 'Wherefore the preferving a live- 
ly fenfe of religion on our hearts, has a direct tenden- 
cy to promote both our acceptablenefs, and our ufe- 
fulnefs. Animated by a pure zeal for the honour of 
"Chrift and the fuccefs of his gofpel, we (hall iludy di- 
ligently and preach fervently.— To which I have only 
to add, 

4. That our dependence mould be firmly placed on 
the gracious and feafonable influences of the Holy 
^Spirit. x 

A growing experience of the vital power of reli- 
gion, ana an increaiing fenfe of the difficulty and impor- 
tance of our work, will jiot fail to convince us of the 
need we ftaiid in of fuperior afliitance. That affiftance 
therefore, both in our fludies and public miniftrations, 
Tve mould earneftly implore, encouraged by the many 
gracious promifes of God's word to that end. Nor 
ihould our views terminate here, but extend to the fa- 
lutary effect of our inftruc~rions upon the hearts of rnen 
which is not to be expefted without a divine blefTmg : 
'for were a Paul to plant or an Apollos to water, it 
would be all in vain, if God gave not the increafe. 

And new, thus prepared, we have a right, be our 
audience who they may, to adopt the language of our 
Matter, and w T ith authority to fay, " Who hath ears to 
hear let him hear." Upon the grounds of common 
fenft as w r ell as reiigiott, we may demand their moft 
ferious attention. And I have the rather chofe to be 
thus particular on the duty of minifters, as it gives me 
the better title to that freedom and earner! nefs which 
I mean to ufe in explaining and enforcing the duty of 

confederation} 



SSFLAINED AND ENFORCED, 21$ 

^n/tdcraticn, to which we now proceed.— And here 
the firit thing we have to recommend is, 

FIRST, Some kind>of preparation previous to cur 
hearing the word. 

If we mean to attend to an argument upon any fub^ 
iter, we mould compoie ourfelves to the bufinefs j e£* 
pecially if the fubjeel: is important, and the difcuiiiorj 
of it likely to take up time, Jufiice can be done tc* 
no argument r ii we come not to the conlideration o£ 
it with minds divefted of prejudice and pafiion. and in 
a calm felt- collected Hate. This therefore we may 
reafonably demand of all -who attend upon the public 
preaching of the gofpel, even thofe who may as yet 
have their doubts of its divine authority. For the 
queftion refpecting its truth, is and muft be acknow- 
ledged, by them as well as others, to be important. 
But the fort of perfons I have here chierly in my eye, 
are not occafional hearers, or thofe who now and then 
out of mere curiouty drop into places of public wor- 
fhip, but thofe wbp ftatedly attend the miniitry of the 
word. To you we fay, and efpecially in regard of the- 
day devoted to divine fervice, Keep your feet when 
ye go to the houfe of God, and be ready, be difpofed to 
hear*, 'ma. temper of mind fuited to the fervice in 
which you are to engage. 

On the morning of that day. in your retirement, 
confider feriouily with yourfelf what you are about. 
Say to yourfeif— the foliioquy is natural and in all 
probability will be ufeful — 44 I am going to a place 
44 where God is worfnipped, and where what is faid to 
44 be his word is difcourfed of. What is the end I 
44 propofe to myfelf in gcing thither r Is it merely to 
M conform to curlom, and to oblige my friends and 

11 neighbours ? 

* Ece&f. v. r, 



220 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

t: neighbours ? Or am I difpofed to Men to what the 
" preacher may fay, and to give it that confideration, 

which its importance as a meffage from God (for 
" that is its claim) demands ? Eoth decency and good 
" fenfe teach, that my going to a place of public in- 
14 i^ruclion obliges me to pay all due attention to the 
" fpc-aker. The matter to be difcourfed of carries 
" importance upon- the very face of it. It refpects 
" my well-being in this world and in that to come. 
44 I therefore do myfelf injuftice if I enter not coolly 
u iiftd the argument, and fo conlider it as to be able 
° to determine whether the doctrine be true or falfe, 
" to be received or rejected. Should the latter upon 
" good grounds appear to be the cafe, -I mall be jufti- 
u lied in abfenting myfelf for the future from a place 
" where error and falfehood are propagated, and 'fa 
6i bearing my teftimony again ft it. I mall have done 
6i my duty, and have the fatisfaftion of afting agree- 
" able to it. Such conduct will be manly, and approve 
a itfelf to God and my own confcience. But, on the 
0 contrary, if I go thither out of curiam, or purely 
a to gratify my curioiity, and pay no other attention to 

the bufinefs than I would to any idle tale told me in 
" common difcourfe, I violate the laws of decency and 
" good manners : and if what I hear fhcuid after all 
** turn out to be true, my reaping no advantage flrom 
" it will be my own fault, and my condemnation ano- 
a ther day the more tremendous. I will therefore fe- 
i; rlouily confider what I am about. I will endeavour 
ii3 t6 J thfufL from my mind all impertinent thoughts, 
" and all anxieties about worldly affairs. I will im- 
" pofe filence upon my pafiions, lay my prejudices under 
<; an interdict, and go to what is called the houfe of 

" God 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED* 221 

u God with all the coolnefs and compofure I can com- 
<i mand." 

Were you thus to reafon with yourfelf, previous to 
your entrance on the public duties of the day, and then 
on your knees humbly and fervently implore the blet 
fing cf God on what you are^ about, you would be 
likely to receive advantage from the word preached. 
Refolve therefore to aft. after this manner *. What I 
have urged is a dictate of common fenfe, and whether 
religion be or be not true, you have no other alterna- 
tive left you, than either to abandon public worfhip 
entirely, or to addrefs yourfelf to it with the feriouf- 
nefs and feif-colieccion that have been recommended. 
—The next thing to be coniidered is, 

SECONDLY, How we ought to behave ourfelves 
in the houfe of God. 

At the time agreed on for the public wwfhip, all 
who mean to join in it mould be prefent. M Peter and 
John went up to the temple at the hour of prayer f 
And Cornelius, when Peter entered his houfe to preach 
the word to him and his family, thus falutes him, 
" New are we all here prefent before God, to hear all 
things that are commanded thee of God J?? The 
coming in after the fervice is begun, is very indecent. 
It is difturbing both to him who leads the worfhip, 
and to thofe who are engaged in it. Eut this is not 
all ; it has an ill influence on w 7 hat follows. Prayer and 
praife, with which public worihip is ufually introdu- 
T 3 ced, 

* Here give me leave to recommend, " Short Meditations on 
Select Portions of Scripture," chiefly defigfied to be read on the 
morning of this day ; by the Rev. Mr Turner of Abingdon. To 
which are added, " Conuderations on tfce Cuftom of vifiting on 
Sunday." 

f A&siii,i* } 



222 Tx4£ DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

ced, are themfelves important branches of duty ; but 
their, utility in connection with preaching is alfo very 
confiderable. The mind, by a ferious and devout at- 
tention to thefe duties, is put into a fuitabie frame and 
temper for hearing the word. Having fung the praifes 
of God with elevation of heart, 'and fervently afked 
his affiftance in attending to what may be fpoken, we 
mall be likely to give the more earneit heed to the 
things that we hear. Ke therefore who indecently 
comes in at a late hour, deprives- himfelf of this natu- 
ral and proper mean of preparation for what is to fol- 
low. Let us then come early to the houfe of God *. 

And need we be told. in what manner we mould be- 
have ourfelves there ? Can it be right to compofe our-- 
felves quietly to fieep ? or to be inceffantly gazing 
about on the congregation ? or to be wholly employ- 
ed in obferving the perfon and watching the attitude 
and manner of the fpeaker ? or to fufter our thoughts 
to wander, like the fool's eye> to the ends of the earth ? 
He who treats public mft ruction after this manner, vio- 
lates the laws of decency and common fenfe, and de- 
feats all the ufeful .purpofes which he would be fuppo- 
fed to have in view, by making one of the audience. 
His prefence fays, he came thither to hear ; his beha- 
viour the contrary. How abfurd ! My coming to the 
affertibly is a tacit avowal of my intention to Men to 
the difcourfe ' 7 that, and that only, ought to occupy my. 
mind. On the tongue, of the preacher my ear mould 
hang \ his views I fhould endeavour to comprehend ° y 
his reafonings I mould diligently attend to \ and the 
thread of his difcourfe I mould clofely Follow. If pre- 
judice 

* See Dr Addington's " Serious Addrefs to Chriftian Worfhip- 
pers, on the importance of an early attendance upon public wor* 
(hip.'' 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED* 22 J 

judice arifes, it mould be oppofed. If paffion diilurbs, 
it mould be fupprefied. In ihort, the fervice mould 
be begun, proceeded in, and concluded with a regard 
to God y and with a fincere wiih to do juftice to the 
argument, to the fpeaker, and to myfelf. A man who 
thus hears, cannot fail, methinks. of being more or lefs 
profited. 

But how much the. reverie of this is the cafe in moil 
Christian affemblies, you need not be told. The coun- 
tenances of too many hearers force upon our minds, a 
fufpicion of their thought lefihefs and inattention, and 
their conduct afterwards puts the matter beyond a 
doubt. But can this be right ? No certainly. " Who 
hath ears," then, " to hear, let him hear." — But there 
is, 

THIRDLY, A duty 1 ying upon us after we have 
heard the word. And upon this you will allow me to 
be particular, as I apprehend the effect of the word, 
with the bleffing of God, depends chiefly upon it. 

Recollection is what I mean, together with felf-appli- 
cation and prayer. " Who hath ears to hear, let him 
hear." As if he had faid, " I have difcourfed to you 
" upon matters of the higher! importance. Do not 
" think now the. difcourfe is ended, that the bufinefs is 
u all over. Carry away what I have faid in your me- 
" mories. Call it over in your retirements. Conflder 
Ci it in every poffible light it can be viewed. Apply 
" it to yourfelves. Make it the fubject of your con- 
u verfation with others. Pray mightily to God for 
" his bleiTing upon it. And frequently advert to it in 
" the courfe of the week, that fo it may have its influ- 
<c ence upon your tempers, words, and actions." So 
the apoftle, when he had been exhorting Timothy to 



224 THE DUT Y OF CONSIDERATION 

his duty, adds, 66 Conftder what I fay, and the Lord 
give thee understanding in all things 

Now the buiinefs of recollection, if properly attend- 
ed to, will require refolution, felf-denial, and prudence. 
Give me leave therefore to aflift you in it, by recom- 
mending the three following expedients — Avoid as 
much as poffible, every thing that may tend to diffipate 
your mind, and render you incapable of coniideration 
and recollection. — Be not fond of hearing more than 
you can retain and digeft. — Make a point of retiring at 
the clcfe of the day, for the purpofe of recollection 
and prayer. 

i. Avoid as much as poffible every thing that may 
tend to diffipate the mind, and render it incapable of 
consideration and recollection. 

Sonie will look upon this caution as favouring of 
pharifaical fe verity and gloominefs, and fcarce con- 
fiftent with that cheerfulnefs which ought to prevail 
among Chriilians, on a day they confider as a feftival. 
Give me leave therefore, before I explain myftlf, to 
proteft againft every thing that looks like grimace in 
religion, or that tends to beget an unfavourable idea of 
any of its duties, as if they were hard and rigorous. 
No. The day we dedicate to divine fervice ought to 
be deemed the pleafanteft in all the week. And if, 
c< when we fall," we ffi° u hi not " be as the hypocrites, 
of a fad countenance," much lefs mould we be fo on 
this day. Rather let us u anoint our head and warn 
our face f put on our belt apparel, look fmilingly on 
all around us, and " eat our meat with gladnefs and 
finglenefs of heart %J* 

But furely there are indulgences which, however al- 
lowable at other times, are not compatible with the 

right 

* % Tim. h. 7- t Mat. vi ' 1 6 > 1 7- t Aas & 4<>. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 12$ 

right difcharge cf the duties of this day. Drefs we 
mull,' but let us not employ fo much of the morning 
in decking our perfons, as to preclude the devotion of 
the clofet and the family. Of the bounties of Provi- 
dence we may cheerfully partake at noon, but what 
occalion for fuperfluities ? Thefe can fcarce be provid- 
ed, without irnpofing fuch fervices on our domeftics, as 
will deprive them of the religious advantages they 
have a right to claim, and would otherwife calmly en- 
joy. The delicacies too of the table, may prove a 
temptation, and indifpofe us to that attention which 
th.e fervices of the afternoon demand. A flight repaftj 
therefore, feems the fittefl for the intervals of publie 
wormip. 

And methinks, every fober perfon mult fee the great 
impropriety, not to fay indecency, of receiving and re- 
turning vifits on this day, and indeed of mingling pro- 
mifcuoufly with any company but that of our own fa- 
milies. Suppofe a man to have liixened ever fo atten- 
tively to the word preached, if the moment he parTes 
out of the aiTembiy, he joins the company of vain, light, 
diflipated people, whofe wim it is to get rid of every 
ferious thought ; how is he likely to be profited by 
what he has heard ? Or if the company he falls into 
are of another call, it is not improbable his attention 
may, by a variety of ck'curnitances, be unduly divert- " 
ed from the*folemnities of public wormip, in uhich he 
had been juit engaged. In this way I am perfuaded, 
the falutary effect of impreiuons received in the houfe 
of God hath in a van; many infiances been defeated* 
Is it not better then, to retire calmly to our houfes, 
and there purfue our duty in the manner good fenfe and 
our Bibles direct ? 

2, Be 



%l6 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

2. Be not fond of hearing more than you can retaiti ' 
and digeit. x 

There is fuch a thing as intemperance, in regard of 
the mind as well as the body : and if exc'effive eating 
may be as hurtful to the conftitution as exceffive ab~ ; . 
ffinence, it is alfo true of the mind, that the hearing 
more than is fit, may be very nearly as injurious as 
the not hearing at all. A great '"abundance of inftruc- 
tion poured into the ear, without fufficient intermifficn 
for reflection and praftice, is extremely prejudicial : it 
confounds the judgment, overburdens the memory, 
and fo jades the mind as to render it incapable of re- 
collecting afterwards what it had heard, and of calm- 
ly deliberating thereon. 

Where, indeed, the only object is the gratification 
of idle curiofity, and perfons are more intent on cir- 
cumftances than things ; and where the preacher, in* 
ftead of reafoning on the great truths of religion, and; 
addreffing himfelf to the confciences of men, fpends' 
the whole time in declaiming, allegorizing, or telling 
tales \ a great deal may be heard with little or no fa- 
tigue or expence of fpirits. But in fuch cafe, what 
real good does a man get ? he is amufed without being 
edified. On the contrary, where the true end of at- 
tending on divine ordinances is propofed, two ferrnons 
a-day, well fludied and attentively heard, - are, in my 
opinion, as much as people in common can any way di- 
geft and improve. For we ought ever to remember, 
that our view in hearing the word, mould be, not mere- 
ly to have our paflions touched, but chiefly our under* 
landings informed and our hearts made better. Then 
are we profited by a fermon, when we carry away a. 
clear idea of divine truth, and a firm perfuafion of i + 9 

authority 



! 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED, 22/ 

authority and importance ) and fo arc upon juft grounds 
awakened, animated, and comforted by it, 

Now, how is it poffible that he who has given clofe 
attention to three or four fuch ufeful fermons in a day, 
mould be capable in the evening, if indeed he had 
time, to do iuftice to what he has heard ! He will go 
hame, at a late hour, fatigued with the bufmefs he has 
been about, and a mind occupied with a chaos of ideas 
which he has neither opportunity nor fpirits to arrange, 
diged, and apply to their proper ufe. And fo the 
pains both of the fpeaker and hearer prove fruitlefs. I 
appeal for the truth of what I fay, to rcafon and expe- 
rience. 

Upon this principle then, I cannot but think it my - 
.duty to diffuade thofe who attend the fervice of the 
morning and afternoon, from frequenting lectures in 
the evening. Thefe exercifes doubtlefs have their ufe 
itvitli refpecl \o many who are fo circumilanced, as not 
to be able to attend the former parts of the day, who 
have no families, or who, if there were no places of 
public in ft ruction to frequent, would be under a temp- 
tation to fpend their evening in idlenefs and diffipation. 
And in fo large and populous a city as this, the efta- 
bliftunent of lectures to thefe purpofes, at a conveni- 
ent diftance from each other, is an object deferving of 
particular attention and encouragement. But to you, 
'Sirs, of the former description, give me leave with all 
freedom to fay, it is your duty, when the afternoon 
fervice is clofed, to go home calmly and ferioufly to 
your families, and fee that the wormip of God is duly 
obferved there— Which leads me to the lafl expedient^ 
recommended, in. order to your deriving real advan- 
tage to yourfelves from the word preached - f and that 

3- The 



Hl% THE DUTY- OF CONSIDERATION 

3. The making a point of retiring at the clofe of 
the day, for the purpofe of recollection and prayer. 

By recolle&ion, I mean the calling over the fub fiance 
of what we have heard : conlidering with ourfelves the 
particular point difcourfed of, the manner in which it 
was ftatedj the reafoning upon it, its agreement with 
fcripture and cur own experience, and the ufes to 
which it was applied. This ferioufly done, and fol- 
lowed with fervent prayer to God for his blefling, we > 
may hope the great truths of religion will be deeply , 
rivetted in our minds, make an abiding impreffion up- 
"on our hearts, and have a mighty influence upon our 
tempers and practice. 

Prudence will direct, how we are to proceed in thefe 
meditations, what time is to be employed therein, and 
what affiftance we may receive by difcourfing with 
our family upon thefe matters. But in general, the 
duty itfelf is fo reafonable and ufeful, that it mould on 
no account be wholly difpenfed with. As to time, 
there can be no want of opportunity, if you make a 
point of avoiding company, and fecuring the evening 
to yourfelf. As to compofing your mind to medita- 
tion, that may ibmetimes be difficult, but it will not 
always be fo, and ufe will make it more and more ea- 
fv, And as to memory, though it be not fo retentive 
as you could wifli, the inuring yourfelf to the practice 
we are recommending will a (lift your memory : and 
then you arc to remember, it is not words you are to 
recoiled, but things. . . 

And now I afk, whether this bufinefs we are exhort- 
ing y ou t0 > ^ oes not a PP rove itTelf to your judgment 
and good fenfe, as molt fit and neceffary. When a 
friend has difcourfed with you upon any intere fling 
matter, refpefting your temporal affairs, do not your 

thoughts 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED, ' 22$ 

thoughts naturally turn upon the fubjecl when you and 
he are parted r Why then mould you wiih to get rid 
of all recollection, when you have been voluntarily 
fpending an hour or two in hearing fubjecl s difcuffed, 
which are confeffedly of infinitely greater importance ? 
Such conduct is difmgenuous, foolifh, and pernicious. 
It is a very unkind return to thofe who have been la- 
bouring, weeping, and praying for your good. It is 
acting after a manner which common fenfe, if its plain 
dictates were confulted, would condemn. And it 
tends directly to the depriving you of the greater]: 
good, and the bringing guilt and mifery upon your 
confcience. But I forbear at prefent to urge this, or 
any other branch of the duty recommended, upon 
you. Gur bufinefs hitherto has been only to lay your 
duty before you : in the next fermon we are to en- 
force it. 

PART II. 

By the exhortation in our text, " Who hath ears to 
hear, let him hear j w our Saviour meant to remind his 
audience, that it was a parable he had been fpeaking 
—that the truth veiled under it was molt important — 
that their ferioufly considering it, was abfolutely ne- 
ceffary to their profiting by it — and that, if they were 
not benefited by his inftructions, the fault would be in 
the perverfenefs of their wills, rather than in the weak- 
nefs of their natural powers, or any obfcurity in the 
form of fpeech he had adopted. Thefe things confi- 
dered, we have proceeded to the object of this dif- 
courfe, which is — to reprefent the duty which men 
owe to the word they hear — and to enforce it with 
fuitable motives. 

U The 



^$0 -THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

The firfl: of thefe was difpatched in the forme* fer« 
snon. Here we fet out with {peaking of the duty of 
thofe who preach. They ought to confider well what 
they fay, otherwife they cannot with reafon expect the 
attention of their audience, nor with decency require 
it. Now if we, Sirs, whofe province it is to addrefs 
you, are confcientious ,in our preparations for public 
work, deliver ourfelves with a plainnefs and foiemnity 
fuited to the importance of our fubjeft, aim at the_glo- 
ry of God and your good, and have our eye directed 
to a divine influence for fuccefs ; if we, I fay, thus 
preach, we may furely, without the charge of arro- 
gance,, demand your mo ft ferious attention. This du- 
ty therefore, on your part, we have proceeded to ex- 
plain, ihewing you — what kind of preparation is ex- 
pedient, previous to your hearing the, word — how you 
ought to behave during your attendance upon, it —and 
the duty that lies upon you after the fervice is con- 
cluded — And now we go on,, as was propofed, 

II. To enforce what has been faid with fuitable mo- 
tives. And our firfl argument (hall be taken, 

FIRST, From the decency and fitneis of the thing 
itfelf. 

Good manners is of great. importance in fociety, 
and there is no one precept held in more general re- 
fpecl: among'civilized people, than that of paying at- 
tention to thofe who fpeak to us. If, indeed, a man 
means to affront me, I am juftined in turning away 
from him. But in all other cafes fuch conduit is illi- 
beral. It w T ere unworthy of a prince to {hut his ear 
asfainll the meaneft of his fubiecfts w 7 hom he admits 
into his prefence 3 and it would be deemed rude be- 
haviour to treat a ftrancrer after this manner who afks 
us a queftion as we pafs the ftreets. But it is the 

heieht 



EXPLAINED A^D ENFORCE!^ ' > £j T 

Jieight of indecency to fuffer ourfelves to be addreffed 
in a fet diicourfe, by a perfon of character, and whom 
we are acquainted with 3 and to give no heed at all to 
4 what he fays. 

Such is the cafe here. It is the duty of minifters 
to difccurfe to us from week to week of the great 
things of God, we regularly attend upon their mini- 
^rations, tliey are men of character and no Grangers 
to us; and yet, inftead of well weighing their dit 
courfes, we treat them wich indifference and neglect* 
Is this right ?■ Is this decent ? To feem to hear and 
not to hear, is to act conformably neither to truth nor 
to good manners. And how can fueh conduct be JU& 
tified upon the common principles of prudence and de- 
corum, fettfng aiide all regard to religion ? If there- 
fore you would Hand well in the opinion of ycuV 
neighbours, as men of fenfe and good breeding, be per- 
fuaded to hear us : if not, go on in your old way, and 
be content to rank with a rude illiterate peafant, who 
treats the laboured difcourfe of a friend on fome ufe- 
ful fubjecVof civil life with ilupid contempt.— To pro- 
ceed, 

N SECONDLY, Let me remind you of the particu- 
lar obligations you owe to thofe whofe minift rations 
you attend. 

This is an argument addreffed to ingenuity and gra 1 - 
titude. Suppofe a friend apprehending fome imminent 
danger likely to befall me, were to be at great pains 
to inform me of it, to entreat me with tears to take 
the neceffary mea fines to efcape it, and to offer me all 
the amflance in his power ; mould I not be much 
obliged to him, and ought I not to give him an atten- 
tive hearing ? On the contrary, were I not only to 
forbear thanking him, but to turn away from him with 

cold 



2^-2 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

cold indifference } would not fuch conduct be difinge- 
nuous as well as prepofterous ? Would not the feel- 
ings of my friend be greatly hurt, and all about me 
condemn my folly ? Nor would it be a fufficient apo- 
logy for fuch ftrange neglect, that I had my doubts of 
the truth of the ftory : for however that might be ? his 
good- will would be juft the fame. 

Now, fuch is precifely the cafe here. Minifters 
wim us of the greate-ft dangers, and hold up to our 
view the moil glorious profpecfcs y with tears entreat, 
us to flee from the wrath to come, and to lay hold on, 
the hope fet before us ^ offer us every afliftance in 
their power, ftudy, pray, and preach, to fave our fouls 
and make us happy. And what is the effect of their 
endeavours ? We hear them y but do we take pains to 
underftand them ? Do we lay up the word iri our me- 
mories,, conilder of it afterwardsj and . pray earneitly 
to God for his bleffing upon it ? No. On the con- 
trary, like thofe in the parable, we " make light of it f 
and go our way, one to his farm, and the other to his 
merchandize * proceed from week to week in the 
old beaten tract, of hearing and forgetting 'what we 
hear, frequenting the houfe of God and purfuing the 
world. 

Now, I afk, is not fuch conduct both foolim and 
difmgenuous I Certainly it is. Nor can you, Sirs, 
excufe it upon any other grounds than will fix an im- 
putation upon your underftanding, or your integrity,, 
or both. For if you conceive of your minifters as 
weak and credulous, or as feif-interefled- and design- 
ing men *, the que (Hon will return, why then do you 
attend their miinftrations ? Your hearing them, and 
going on to hear them, lays you under an obligation 

to, 

* Matrxxii. 5. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED* 2 J J- 

to them, from which nothing can diichlbge yoa, but 
that ferious consideration of what they fay, which we 
are fo warmly recommending. 

Let us, however, fpend a moment upon the two ex- 
eufes juft glanced at. Are thefe men w r eak and cre- 
dulous ? Poffibly fome of them may. Yet we will 
venture ip, affirm* that in general they poffefs as good 
a (hare of underitanding as others. It is acknowledg- 
ed, indeed, that mining wit, profound fenfe, and great 
literary attainments, are not neceffary to qualify men 
to preach the gofpcl. w God has," fometimes, " cho- 
fen the foolifh things of the world, to confound the 
wife $ and the weak things of the world, to confound 
the things which are mighty **" A plain man may 
clearly Hate, ably defend, and w T armly enforce the 
grtat truths of religion. And a failure in point of ac- 
curacy and judgment, is no reafon why you mould not' 
confider what is faid, iince the gofpel is fubftantiaily 
the fame. And after all, be the abilities of the fpeak- 
er more or lefs diftinguiihed, your prefence, and es- 
pecially your ftated attendance on his miniftry, gives 
him an unqueftionable right, as we obferved before, to 
demand your ferious attention. 

The other excufe is fuch as no man of a liberal 
mind would admit, unlefs compelled to it by the clear- 
ell evidence. And in that cafe, he would rather with- 
draw himfelf from the imtruftion of one whofe views 
he had juft caufe to fufpeel, than urge his unfavour- 
able opinion of him, as a reafon for not duly attending 
to his admonitions. But common chanty wall oblige 
men to conclude, that thofe who difcourfe to them of 
the great things of God, lincerely mean to promote 
their good* And whoever confide-rs the temporal 
U 3 advantages 
# i Gor.i. 27. 



^34 THE DUTY Q F CONSIDERATION 

advantages which many of this character forego, and 
the various inconveniences and trials to which they 
expofe themfelves in the exercife of their miniftry, 
will allow that the prefumption is ftrongly in their fa- 
vour. 

It is admitted then, that they who preach the word 
of the kingdom, have your good, Sirs, at heart, And 
may not an argument be drawn from hence, to per- 
fuade you to confider ferioufly what they fay ? Can 
you refufe them a requefi: fo reafonable in itfelf, and 
which will infinitely gratify them, without the poffibi- 
lity of doing you any harm ? Let the mefTage they 
bring ftand how it will at prefent in your mind, it is, 
in their apprehenfion, mod true and important ; and 
fo far you give them credit. Can you wonder then, 
that feeing you in danger of periihing for ever, they 
are eager to pluck you as brands ojut of the burning ? 
and that, perceiving an infinite good in profpecl, they 
ardently wifh you to become poffeffed of it? Will you 
call this wiih, this.defire, this impulfe of theirs, by 
any other N name than , good- will ? Ought it not to at- 
tach them to you, and to draw forth correfpondent 
affections in your breafts towards them ? Will you 
take no account of their pains and labours, their ft nig- 
gles and conflicts, their tears and temptations ? Shall 
they exert all their powers in the ftudy of God's word, 
to poffefs you of the rich treafure it contains ? Shall 
they pour out their cries to Heaven day and night for 
you I Shall they travail in birth of you, till Chrift is 
formed in you ? Shall they, as his- ambaffadors, and in 
his Head, befecch you to be reconciled to God ? "Shall 
they, in a word, by all that is dear to them and you, 
entreat you to confider the things that belong to your 
everlafting peace ? — -And can you after all receive 

their 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 2$$ 

their meffage with cold indifference 5 forget it as foon 
as you have heard it ) with them, like thofe bidden to 
the marriage -feaft, to have you excufed to the matter 
of it, and fend them back to him with this fad com- 
plaint, " Who hath believed our report, and to whom 
is the arm of the Lord revealed ?" God forbid ! O 
confider the pain this will give their hearts ! And 
connder tooj on the contrary, the joy they will feel, 
mould' your conduct be the reverfe of what has been 
reprefented ! No external token of refpect can they 
poflibly receive from you, that is to be mentioned at 
the fame time with this — This, this is the reward o£ 
their miniftry. — Again, 

THIRDLY, It is to be remembered, that preach- 
ing is a divine inftitution ; and that they who are cal- 
led to difpenfe the gofpel, have, by virtue of that call, 
a claim to the attention of thofe to whom they are fent. 

I am fenflble too many artful men have taken ad- 
vantage of this idea to impofe upon the credulity of 
mankind, and fo to obtrude Upon the world, opinions 
of a pernicious tendency, both to the civil and reli- 
gious interefts of fociety. And too many, it muft be 
added, under the character of Chriftian minirters, have 
challenged a kind of reverence from the ignorant mul- 
titude, to which they have no title, and without any 
view, it is to be feared, to promote what ought to be 
the grand object of their miniftry. They have talked 
loudly of the dignity of the priefthood, of indelible 
character, and of I know not what occult quality an- 
nexed to their office, and the manner of their admif- 
non to it, independent of perfonal character. But 
thefe pretenfions every faithful minifter ofChrift will 
reject with contempt, as no better than fo many charms 
or fpells, to enflave mankind to a fort of fpiritual do- 

minion,, ( 



2$6 THE DUTY OS" CONSIDERATION 

minion, founded neither in reafon nor the word of God* 
The pofition, however, juft laid down, is capable of 
full and fatisfa&ory proof. 

If we will regard ike authority of Scripture, preach- 
ing is a divine inflitution, and is to continue in the 
world to the end of time. When our Saviour afcend- 
ed up into heaven, he commiffioned his difciples to 
" teach all nations and u to go into all the worlds 
and preach the gofpel to every .creature f : 7 ' and the 
promife annexed, i( Lo, I am with you alway, even to 
the end of the world J," clearly fhews that the com- 
tarlion was to extend to ChrifHan minifters of every 
age and country. The phrafe, of " the end of the 
worid ? " could not mean here, as it fometimes does, the ! 
end of the Jewifn difpenfation, for the perfons to 
whom the gofpel was to be preached, were of the re- 
motel! countries— " every creature." It is plain 
therefore, he meant to fay, that preaching was to be 
received and acknowledged as his appointment ; and 
that it mould be fucceeded, through his influence and 
blcff.ijg, to the'latefl times. 

The apoftle holds the fame language, when he tells 
us, that " it pleafed God by the foolifhneis of preach- 
ing, to fave them that believe j| and when he thus 
reafons with the Romans, " How fhall they call on 
him in whom they have not believed ? And how mall 
they believe in him of whom they have not heard ? 
And how mall they hear without a preacher ? And 
. how mall they preach except they are fent ? As it is 
written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach 
the gofpel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good 
things ! So then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing 

by 

# Matt, xxviii. 19. f Mark xvi. 15. 

i Matt, xxviii. sew 11 1 Cor. i. si. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED* 2$ J 

By the word of God Agreeable to this we are 
commanded not to defpife propbefyings, that is, preach- 
ing f ; and to receive thofe who come in the name of 
Chrift, with a regard fuitable to the authority that 
fends them, and the importance of the meffage they 
^ bring J. And fo there are many expreflions of God's 
difpleafure againft thofe, who contemptuoufly refufe 
them that fpeak in his name ; and many promifes of 
his favour and bleffing to thofe who receive the word 
gladly, and fearch the Scriptures to fee whether thefe 
things are fo. 

As to the queftion, how may we know who are call* 
ed of God to preach the gofpel ? it will be a fufficient 
reply- to it here, without entering into particulars 
which would carry us too far \ that every man's rea- 
fon, if he will make proper ufe of it, confulting at the 
fame time his Bible, will enable him to difcover pret- 
ty clearly who are not called of God : and it may and 
ought to be prefumed of the reft, that he has raifed 
them up and fent them. No one in his fenfes can fup- 
pofe, that men who have not the powers of utterance 
who are grofsly ignorant \ who live ill lives \ who are 
manifeft perverters of the gofpel \ who, weary of their 
callings, thruft themfelves into the miniftry againft the 
opinion of wife and fober-men, and the Chriftian fodie- 
ties to which they belong y or who have no reafonable 
profpecl of exerciilng their miniftry to edification : I 
fay, it is not imaginable that fucli men are called of 
God. But thofe of the contrary defcription ought, in 
the judgment of charity, to be fo ccnfidered and recei- 
ved, be the forms of their admiiiion to this facred of- 
fice what they may. 

And 

% Rom. x. 14, 15. 17. j 1 TheiT. v. 23. 

\ See Matt. x. 40. Mark ix. 37, — 41. John xiii, 2c. 



2$S THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

And now, furely an argument may be drawn from 
their calling, to perfuade men to trie ferious confidera'- 
tion of the bufinefs on which minifters are fent 1 . 
Though they are not veiled with miraculous powers, 
nor exempted from the common frailties of humanity, 
they are yet as truly fen t by God as were the prophets 
and apoftles : and if by magnifying their office they 
may roufe the attention of their heaters, and fo be the 
inftruments of faving their fouls, their u ling this free- 
dom is not only allowable but commendable, Yes, 
Sirs, we will magnify our office, if by any means we 
may provoke you to emulation. We will prefume to 
tell you that we are fent of God, if that will gain 
your ear — if that will fix your attention, In the name 
of God then ! and as ye will anfwer it at his dread tri- 
bunal ! we command you to hear us — we require you 
to confider the meffage we are charged with.— O be 
perfuaded !— But if ye will obftinately refufe, We can 
dc*no other than go back to him who fent us, and re- 
port your refufal. So we will" do. Look ye trx the 
confequence. If ye will perifh — fad thought !— we— 
we mull be to you a favour of death unto death.-— But 
let us now go on to argue the point, 

FOURTHLY, From the momentous nature of 
the bufinefs itfelf on which we are fent to you. 

It is upon no trifling concern, no matter of doubtful 
import, we addrqfs you. The meffage we have to de- 
liver is of the highefl importance, aud fupported by the 
fulleU evidence. In the civil affairs of life, "Truth 
and Importance always give energy to a difccurfe. I 
am infinitely more arTecled with an argument that 
comes home to my property, perfon, and reputation m 7 
than with the curious fpeculations of a philofopher, the 
warm reafoning of a politician, or the amuiing talk of 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED*. 239 

an-niftorian. I mall not be a moment determining 
which (hall have my ear, he who comes to tell me of 
an effate that is fallen to me, or he who wifhes to di- 
vert me with an idle dream. But the competition in 
this cafe is infinitely lefs, than that between the moft 
weighty concern of the prefent life, and the falvation 
of an immortal foul, 

Religion carries upon the very face of it an impor~ 
fa nee, not to be fully eftimated by any human rnea- 
fures. It has for its object, a being of immenie perfec- 
. tion, and for the feat of its reiidence, a foul formed for 
immortality. It 'holds up to our view an infinite va- 
riety of truths, the moft inftructive and interesting. 
It pofTefTes our-minds of' ideas, the moll auguit and 
marvellous. It relieves our confeiences of the bitter- 
eil pains, and poilrs into our bofoms the moil: refined 
joys. It makes a revolution in the foul, converts lions 
into lambs, and raifes men from a ftate of abjeft wretch- 
ednefs to the high eft pitch of honour and happinefs. 
.It extends its influence through all the concerns, of life, 
the vale of death, and- an endlefs duration hereafter. 
It brings near to the eye of faith, the invifible realities 
of an eternal world, the joys of heaven and the tor- 
ments of hell, the laft judgment, the burning elements, 
the diffolving world, the general wreck of uiuverfal 
nature^ 

' Weald you frame an idea of the importance of reli- 
gion ? — Lilten to the dying groans of the incorrigible 
(inner—fix your eye on the placid countenance of the 
expiring Chriftian — -hear the triumphant (bouts of an 
army of martyrSj parTing through the flames of perse- 
cution to the joys of heaven — -defcend into the prifon 
of hell, and take a, view of the gloomy manfions, of the 
damned— life thence to the abodes of biifs above, and 

mingle 



240 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

mingle with the general affembly and church of the 
firft-born — What mall I fay ? — go to mount Calvary ? 
and behold the Creator of the world expiring on a 
crofs, to give exiftence to religion in the heart of man. 
Amid thefe fcenes, every thing accounted great among 
mortals vanifhes into nothing — expires like a taper in 
the full blaze of the fun. States, kingdoms, and em- 
pires difappear^ the glory of the world paffes away 0 
And on the other hand, the heavier!; load of evils un- 
der which the Chriftian groans, becomes light and mo- 
mentary. — And now, if thefe are the matters on which 
we difcourfe to you, are they not of all others the 
moft important ? Should you not then give earneil 
heed tathe things you hear. 

But you will perhaps fay, " Important as thefe ? 
" matters may feem, if there is no truth in them, and 
*' they are only the reveries of a heated imagination \ 
" I am juftified in paying no attention to them." 
True, you are. But then you ought to be well ai- 
fured of your premifes, before you draw your conclu- 
fion. On the contrary, you cannot but own it is poffi- 
ble thefe things may be true \ yea, fometimes they 
ftrike you as highly probable. But we affirm that 
they are true, and bring politive proof in fupport of 
our affirmation. We tell you, there verily is a re- 
ward for the righteous, and a God that judgeth in 
the earth , and that we have not followed cunningly 
devifed fables, when w r e made known unto you the 
power and coming of our Lord Jefus Chritt. And 
we appeal for the truth of what we thus affirm, to the 
teftimony of the moll authentic records ; to a feries 
of miracles that cannot be lejecled, without admitting 
facls more difficult to be credited than thefe miracles 
themfelvesj to a long train of prophecies, fome of 

which 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 24! 

which have been fulfilled, and others are now fulfilling 
before your eyes j to the purity and fublimity of the 
Chriftian doctrine ^ to the wonderful effects it has pro- 
duced in the hearts and lives of men , to its progrefs 
in the world, amidft the powerful and perfevering op- 
pofition it has met with from paffion, pride, and preju- 
dice ; and to the confent of the wife ft and belt, men 
that have fiouriihed on cur earth, and who, many 
thoufands of them, have fealed their faith with their 
blood. 

And will you, amidft all this evidence, difpute the 
truth of thefe things ? Yea, more than this, will you 
confidently affert, that there is not the appearance of 
truth in them ? For fo much you rauft affert, before 
you can account with confiftency for that inattention 5 
from which we are fo earneftly diffusding you. What 
horrid perverfenefs this ! Shall we take you to the foot 
of mount Sinai, and (hew you the great God defcend- 
ing thereon, in fire, and blacknefs, and darknefs, and 
temped ? Shall we lead you from thence to the fepul- 
chre of the crucified Jefus, and prefent him to your 
view rifing from his grave, and paffing up through the 
clouds into heaven I And will you pronounce religion 
a cunningly devifed fable ? How determined fuch pre- 
judice ! How inveterate fuch enmity ! 

But perhaps you, Sirs, hold another kind of lan- 
guage. Like Galiio the Roman deputy, you care for 
none of thefe- things, nor are you anxious to find an ex- 
cufe for your indifference. We tell you of a heaven 
and a hell, of death and judgment, of a Saviour and 
the great things he has done, of religion and the blef- 
fings it propofes, of a foul and all it is capable of en- 
joying and fuffe ring ) and you coolly reply, " It may 
" be fo for aught we know : we hear you, but will 



1^4^ THE- DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

"-give ourfelves no further trouble about it." What 
ihipid infatuation ! Surely fuch conduct, if perfifted in, 
cannot fail of bringing down the vengeance of almighty 
God on your devoted heads. 

Hear the reafoning of the apoftle upon this fubieft, 
when exhorting men to the great duty we are now en- 
forcing. " Therefore we ought to give the more car- 
neit heed to the things which we have heard, left at 
any time we mould let them flip. « For -if the word 
fpoken by angels was ftedfaft, and every tranfgreffion 
.and difobedience received a juft reeompence of re- 
ward ; how (hall we efcape if we -neglect' fo great fal- 
vation, which at the nvix began, to be fpoken by the 
Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard 
him \ God alfo bearing them witnefs, both with figns 
andV wonders, and with divers miracles and gifts of the 
Holy Ghoft, according to his own will * !" — Thus 
you fee the importance of the things delivered, is an 
argument to engage our attention to them : as is alfo 9 

FIFTHLY, The neceflity of confideration in .or- 
der to our profiting by the word. 

A difcourfe that is not underftood, believed, and 
felt, can do a man no good : it- will neither guide his 
judgment, influence his temper, or govern his conduct. 
And whatever benefit -we do receive from a difcourfe, 
it will be proportioned to the clearnefs of our percep- 
tions, the ftrength of our faith, and the livelinefs of 
our feelings. Let the matters, therefore, on which 
minifters treat, be ever fo momentous, if we affix no 
ideas to them, and fo are neither perfuaded of their 
reality, nor affected with their importance, we cannot 
be edified. But how are we to underfland, believe, 
and feel J without hearing, reflecting, and confidering ? 

V 

* Heb. ii. 1,-4. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED". , 

It bath been faid, indeed, that fome perfons have been 
converted by a lingle word : and in fuch inflances. It 
may feem at nrlt view, as it there could be little, if 
any confideration. But this is a miftake. The word, 
(fuppofe eternity), which, with the blefling of God 9 
proved the mean of the man's converlion, did not ope- 
rate as a fpell or charm \ it did not produce a change 
in his mind he could not tell how or wherefbr. No, 3 
The truth is, his attention was fixed to the fentiment 
couched under the word j and lo impreflions were 
made on his heart, which, after a courfe of reafoning ? 
ilTued in its converlion. It is then by attending, think- 
ing, and considering, that men are converted. Gsd 
deals with us as reasonable creatures. No new facul- 
ties are given us. The order of nature is not reverfed. 
We are not required to underftand without thinking, 
to believe without confidering, or to feel without re- 
ceiving imprelTion. Of what importance then is the 
duty we are recommending ! ** Who hath ears to hear ? 
let him hear," 

Nor does the doctrine of divine influences at all mi- 
litate againft this duty : on the contrary, it is a great 
incentive to it. While you are hanging upon the lips 
of the preacher, following him from fentence to fen- 
tence, and endeavouring to comprehend his meaning, 
who knows but divine light may fpring up in your 
minds, and a new bias be given to your will ? " Faith 
comes by hearing * j ,f and while Lydia was thus em- 
ployed, " the Lord opened her heart to attend to the 
things fpoken by Paulf While you are calling over 
what, you have heard, examining yourfelves by it, and 
fe arching the Scriptures to fee whether, thefe things 
are fo j who knows but God may give you under/land- 

ing f 

* Rom. x. 17. f A<£ts xvi. 14. 



2 44 - TKE EUTY 0F CONSIDERATION 

ing *, circumcife your heart to love him f } and incli&z 
you to his teflimonies %? 

The fame obligation that lies upon us to difcourfe to 
you of the great things of religion, lies upon you to 
confider them. It is our duty, affured that God will 
judge the world, to command all men every where to 
repent \\ ; knowing the terror of the Ldrd, to perjuade 
them § ; and, having the word of reconciliation com- 
milted to z/j, to.be/eech them in Chrifrs /lead to be re- 
conciled unto God\. We cannot, indeed, command 
fuccefs. But (hall we therefore forbear the difcharge 
of our duty ? That would be moll unreafonable and 
dilmgervjous. No; Animated by this divine doctrine 
of the influence of the -Holy Spirit, we will apply our- 
felves with the greater ardour to our w r ork. In like 
manner, it is your- duty to hear, confider, read, and _ 
pray. A fuperier power, however, is neceffary to re- 
new your heart. But will you,therefore neglect, your 
duty ? That would be unreafonable and difmgenuous. 
No ; Rather let this divine doctrine become an argu- 
ment to quicken you, as w T ell as us, with redoubled vi- 
gour to your duty. Confider what we fay, and the 
Lord give you underftanding. — But it mould be fur- 
ther remembered, that as without attention and conli- 
deration, there is no profiting by the word 3 fo ? 

SIXTHLY, There are many obftruclions in the 
way of this duty, the recollection of which ought to 
have the force of an argument to excite and animate 
us to it. 

What thefe obftmclicns are we have {hewn yoiu 
Our Lord reprefents thern in a very {hiking manner 
in the parable we have been explaining. He tells us 

-that 

* 2Tim.i1. 7. f Deut.xxx. 6. t Plal. cxix. 36. 

J- Acbxvii. 30, 31. § 2 Cor. y.i 1. *ff % Cor. v. 19, 20, 



EXFLAlNlb AND ENFORCED. 245 

that fatan, fin, and the world, exert their utmcft powers 
to prevent the natural and proper operation of the 
word on the heart : and this their purpofe they effect^ 
by diffuading men from a calm and ferious attention to 
it. Satan, the wicked one, comes and catches away 
the word as foon as it is fown, that they may not beheve 
and be faved. He endeavours to divert their thoughts 
from it while they are hearing it, or to excite prejudices 
in their breafts againft it, or to hinder their recollec- 
tion of it afterwards. What a fubtle malicious adver- 
fary this ! The heart too is indifpofed to receive the 
word. It is hard and unyielding,., like Jiony or rocky 
ground. The underftanding admits not eafily the 
light of divine truth j the will is not without great 
difficulty lubjecled to it ; and the paffions, carried 
away by an unnatural and violent impulfe, prevent the 
due operation of the word on the judgment and con- 
science, and fo defeat the "falutary end for which it 
is preached, Men receive 'the word with gladntfs ; 
\yjL$'bavitig no root in them/elves, they endure only for 
a time ; afterward, when tribulation or perfecution 
arifeth becaufe of the' word, they are offended* And 
then the world is a great hinderance to the fuccefs of 
the word. As the thorns fpringing up with the feed 
choke it, fo the cares, riches, and pleafures of the 
world, choke the word, and the man becomes unfruit- 
ful. His time is fo taken up with the affairs of life, 
that he has not leifure for meditation. His heart is fo 
opprefTed with anxious tares, or fo elated with the 
hope of gain, or fo fafcinated with fenfual gratifica- 
tions, that he know 7 s not how to ccmpofe his mind to 
coniideration. And the more deeply he enters into 
the fpirit of the world, the more is his averfion to reli- 
gion confirmed. So that " it is eafier for a camel to 
X 3 pafs 



2^6 TffE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

pafs through the eye of a needle, than for & rich man," 
that is, a man who makes the wo>rld his objefl, " ta 
enter into the kingdom of God 

Now, taking all thefe circumftances into view, and 
at the fame time remembering what was juft faid of the 
infinite importance of religion y we pofifefs a further 
powerful motive to confideratio-n. The inattention of 
Archimedes to his perfonal fafety, at the facking of 
the famous city of Syracufe, was truly wonderful. So 
intent was he upon demonstrating his problem, that 
when the Roman foldiers entered his fludy, with a de- 
mand on his life, all the favour he had to aik of them 
was, that he might not be diflurbed till he had finifh- 
ed the bufmefs he was about. Strange ! Self-prefer- 
vation, one would have thought, mould have taken the 
precedence of every other confederation : and of con- 
iequence taught him, before the fatal moment arrived^ 
to difmifs his ftudies, and take the proper meafures for 
his efcape. And is it not equally .wonderful, that men 
mould not feel the force of the motive we are now ur~ 
ging, in concurrence with that of the importance of re- 
ligion i to provoke them to confideration ? 
: If a man knew his houfe to be on fire, would he fuf- 
fer his attention to be diverted from fo alarming a cir~ 

o 

cumftance by the amufements of the family, or the 
bufinefs of the accompting-houfe ? No. His danger 
would fo wholly occupy his mind, as to thruft every 
other concern from his view, and roufe him into im- 
mediate aclion. And mall 'we, Sirs, whole life, whofe 
happinefs, whofe all is, at -flake *, fuffer ourfelves to be 
lulled into a fatal feeurity by the machinations of fatan, 
tiio deceitful realbnings of our own hearts, and the vain 
allurements of the world ? On the contrary, mould 

not 

* Mark x. 25. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED. 

«ot the invidious attempts of thefe enemies, foufe our 
indignation, and their open alia ults_ animate us to eve- 
ry poiTible exertion ? What ! lhall the wicked one, 
like a bird of prey, watch his opportunity to catch 
away the good feed as foon as it falls on the ground \ 
and we know it, and yet not be on our guard ? Shall 
he go about like a roaring lion, feeking whom he may 
devour \ and we fee him approaching, and yet make 
no refinance* ? Shall he have great wrath, becaufe 
he knoweth his time is fhort f ) and we none to cp- 
pofe him, though we know our time is equally fhort ? 
Shall he be ever plotting how to carry his malevolent 
defigns into execution, and we be ftupidly thou-ghtlefs 
and inconsiderate ? Can fuch a bafe kind of cowardice 
as this confift with the character of men of fenfe and 
fpirit ? Let us take example of him, and if oppontion 
creates watchfulnefs and attention on his part, let it 
have the fame effect on ours. 

This reafoning will likewife apply to all the other 
obstructions to consideration of which we have fo 
largely difcourfed, I mean thofe ariiing from irregular 
pafiions, in combination with worldly cares and plea- 
fares. The more loud and clamorous thefe diflurbers 
of our devotion are, the more vigorous and fpirited 
mould be our refinance to their felicitations. Reflect 
then, we be leech yon, when- going to the houfe of 
God, while there,, and as you are coming from thence, 
on this formidable confederacy among your enemies, 
to prevent your acquiring the moil ineftimable gain, 
and to fecure your final condemnation \ and let this 
alarming reflection roufe your attention. 

SEVENTHLY, The authority th at enjoins this duty 
upon us, adds infinite weight to all that has been faid. 

To 

* i Pet. v. 3. f Rev. xii. 12, 



248 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

To attend diligently to the reafonings and perform 
lions of thofe who publifh the gofpel in our ears, is the 
folemn command of the great God 5 of him who is 
above all, fills all, and is the end of all things y who 
made us, made us reafonable creatures, and will call 
us to an "account for the ufe of our reafon \ who has 
heaven and earth at his difpofal, and is at- no lofs for 
means to punHh thofe who difpute his authority, and 
to reward thofe who diligently feekf him , who in 
fhort can inftantly blot us out of exigence, or fink us 
into an abyfs of endlefs milery. What an imrnenfe 
Being this ! Can we think of him, and not fhudder at 
the idea of wilful difobedience to his commands ? 

He hath fignified his will to us$ by the light of na- 
ture, by the holy Scriptures, and- by the i^inifters of 
his gofpel. Reafon is the voice of God, It was givets 
us to direcl: our conduct^ and though enfeebled by hu- 
man apoftafy, it clearly teaches us our obligations to 
this great duty of confideration. The Scriptures too 
are the voice of God, and they enjoin this- duty on us 
with the greateft earneftnefs and folemnity. / have 
Jet watchmen over you, hearken to the found of the 
trumpet** Believe the prophets, and ye fhall pro- 
fper f . Hearken diligently — Hear y and your foul fhali 
lively. Give earnefl heed to the things ye hear j|. 
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. It were endlefs 
to cite paffages of this fort, with which the Scriptures 
every where abound. And then the voice of mini- 
fters, if agreeable to the Bible, is the voice of God 1 
io that, as Chrifl fays, " if we hear them, we hear 
him : and if we d-efpife them, we defpiie him § And 

bow 

- * Jer. vi. 17. f 2 Chron. xx. 20. } Ifa.lv. 2,3,' 
|| Heb, iu 1. § Luke x. 16. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED, 249 

how earne illy they befeech us~ to confider what they 
iay, you need not be again told. 

Can it then be doubted whether that confederation 
we have been exhorting you to, is a duty enjoined 
upon you by the great God ? It is his command $ and 
will you pay no attention to it ? When God fpake 
thefe folemn words from Mount Sinai, Hear, 0 Ijrael ! 
think you the wretch who mould have dared to fay, / 
will not hear, would have efcaped intrant punithment ? 
No. The hands of the whole congregation would 
have been upon him \ no eye w r ould have pitied him. 
Nor can you w r ith. reafon plead in excufe for your in- 
attention, that God does not now fpeak to us, as he 
did then, with an audible voice from heaven. For i£ 
the manner in which he communicates his will to you 
under the prefent difpenfation, is more mild and gen- 
tle than under the former ; if the fmall Hill voice of 
the gofpel is better adapted to allure you to confedera- 
tion, than that of an angel, or one jult rifen from the 
dead 5 and if you have iumcient evidence of its divine 
authority, yea, the full complement of external evi- 
dence aiihrg from the union of the Mofaic and Chri- 
stian inilitutions ) it will follow, that your guilt, in- 
Head of being extenuated, is in no fmall degree aggra- 
vated. How then will you efcape who negleB thi?- 
great f ah at ion * ? No excufe can be framed for your 
difobedience. It is rebellion, wilful rebellion, the ut- 
rnoit effort of rebellion. To fay you will not obey 
this or that command of God, is horrid infolence 5 but 
to fay you will not give him the hearing, is at once to 
violate all his commands, and to offer him the higher!: 
poffible indignity. What puniihmtnt does not fuch 
conduct deferve ? And can you wonder, perfifting in 

your 

*Heb,ii.3. 



2$Q THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 1 ' 

your obfHnacy, that the fierce wrath of almighty God 
fhould fmoak againrl you ? 

Hear the fentence of his word } it hath gone out of 
his lips, and will fpeedily be executed. " Every TguI 
which. will not hear, mall be deitroyed from among the 
people *." " They refufed to hear my words, there- 
fore, behold, I will bring evil upon them^ which they v 
Ihall not be able to efcape f " Whofoever," fays 
Ghrift to his minifters, " flialf not receive you, and 
hear your words f it (hall be more tolerable for the 
land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, 
than fcr them-t. 9 ' " The Lord Jefus ihall be revealed 
from heaven, with his mighty angels,* in flaming fire, 
to take vengeance on them that know not God, and 
that obey not the gofpel of our Lord Jefus Chrift |J# M 
What an awful day will that be ! And can you lay 
your hands on your hearts, and fay, that the language 
of the bleffed God to fueh obftinate finners in their 
extremity, is unjuft ? " Becaufe I have called, and ye 
refufed, I have ilretched out my hand and no man re- 
garded \ but ye have fet at nought all my counfel, and 
would none of my reproof : I alfo will laugh at your 
calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh : When 
your fear cometh as defolation, and your deftruftion 
cometh as a whirlwind j when dirt re fs and anguirli 
cometh upon you § — But I have one argument more 
to add, and that is taken, 

EIGHTHLY, and kftly? From the advantage to 
be expected from confideration. 

That men are averfe to this duty, the language o£ 
the text fuppofes \ and it is a fact too notorious to be 
difputed. But upon what principles are they averfe 

to 

* Acfts iii. 23. f Jer. xi, 10. 11. \ Matt, x. 14. 1 5. 

i( 2 Theff. i. 7, S. § Prov. i. 24,-27.. 



EXPLAINED AMD ENFORCED. 2§l 

to it ? Let us meet your prejudices, Sirs, and endea= 
v©ur to obviate them. — Is the bufinefs, in the firft 
place, impracticable? Do we require you to flop 
the tide, to tear up mountains from their foundations, 
to pluck 'the fun from his orb, or reverie the order of 
nature r No. We afk nothing of you, but what may 
be done, what others have done, and what you your- 
felves are capable of doing. 

" But, it is a difficult, painful, laborious kind of bu= 
64 finefs." Say you fo \ Where is the mighty difficul- 
ty of liirening to a plain difcourfe, carrying away the 
leading ideas of it in your memory, comparing theaii 
with the dictates of conference and fcripture, and then 
gcing down cn your knees, and begging God that 
what you have heard may do you good ? Where is the 
hardfhip of all this ? You can reafon and ftrive.to get 
this world j and pray why cannot you ufe the fame en- 
deavours about another ? You think not much of 
fpending hours in the purfiiit of wealth, and at your 
pleaiures \ and why mult it be deemed an hercukan 
labour, to fix your attention for one hour to a fermon, 
and to retire afterwards half an hour to -obtain fatis- 
faction, whether what you have heard is true or falfe, 
of moment or of no account at all ?, If men will make 
mountains of rnole-hills, be afraid of their own {ha- 
dows, and confider every little exertion as hazardous 
to their existence *, there is an end, not only to all 
great exploits, but to the common bufmeffes of life. 
Roufe then from your floth, put on refolution, and fet 
about the duty we aie recommending. 

" But, "lay you, a the refult of conflderation will, 
" I fear, be unfavourable to me," So then you think 
conflderation will do you harm. — Strange ! If that 
were the cafe, we ought to diGuade you from it. But 

would 



%$2 THE DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

would you be pleafed, were we to wi(h you to take 
what we fay for granted, without giving yourfelf the 
trouble to enquire into it? You would not. Why 
then fhould you be angry with us for preffing that upon 
you, the contrary df which would reflect a diihonout 
upon your underftanding ? — " But you"may chance to 
%i be perfuaded of things you do not wifh to believe." 
Aye, that's the matter.. Here lies the grand difficul- 
ty. But how unmanly this excufe ! Truth is truth, 
whether you do or not believe it. If upon enquiry 
you become fully fatisfied that religion is an emp- 
ty dream, the event will be to »your with, and you 
will go on finning with greater eafe to yourfelf than 
ever. If, on the contrary, it mould prove to be true, 
the knowledge and perfuafion of - this great truth, 
however unwelcome to you, may in the end be of in- 
finite advantage. To urge men to the confideration 
of dangers which there is no poffibility of efcaping., 
would be cruel. But that is not the cafe here. 
Though it lhould turn out that you are a miferable 
finner, in danger of fuffering the wrath of God, and 
without any help in yourfelf *, yet your cafe is not def- 
perate, there is help in the gofpel. The fame motive 
therefore that induces us to hold up thefe painful truths 
to your view, -mould induce you to confider them. 
But be the event how it may, it is a reflection on your 
underftanding and refolution to refufe to confider a 
queftion, for fear the reply to it mould not be agreea- 
ble. And indeed, this excufe of yours is a presumptive 
argument that religion is true, or at leaft that you have 
your apprehenfions after all that it is not a delufion. 

But you go on to object, u If I lifien to your ad- 
'f vice, and become a convert to religion, I muft re- 
" nounce habits I have contracted, break off my gay 

" acquaintance, 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED, 2 JJ 

^'acquaintance, and give up all my future worldly 
" profpefts 3 and on the contrary, muft be content to 
" fpend the remainder of my life in fadnefs and for- 
" row, deferring all hope of happinefs to a future Irate." 
But if the matter were as you have ftated it, admitting 
there is a heaven for the righteous and a hell for the 
wicked \ you are not juftified in conceiving of religion 
with horror, and flarting back from confideration as 
an exercife utterly inimical to your real interests. If 
the habits you have contracted are evil,, ought they 
not to be renounced ? If the company you aiTociate 
with are dangerous, fhould they not be fhunned ? If 
the eager purfuit of worldly gain and pleafure will in= 
evitably Involve you in mifery, fhould not fuch pur- 
faits be dilcontinued "? And even though the remain- 
der of your life were" to be fpent in felf-denial and af- 
fliction, you would have no .caufe, with the hope of hea- 
ven before you, to regret the exchange you had made 
of the fervice of fin for that of God and religion. It 
is our intereft to fubmit patiently, to the fevereft difci- 
pline inflicted in. the fchool of wildom, if thereby we 
msy be prepared for the exalted joys and fervices to 
which we are to be admitted when at man's eftate. 

But the truth is, if the event of your attention and 
confederation fhould be, what you at prefent dread, 
your converfion from fin to God ; you will be a eainer 
in the highefl degree, not in the future world only, but 
in the prefent. The pleafures refulting from peace ^f 
conference, communion with God, the hope of heaven, 
the exercife of the Christian temper, and the practice 
of all thole duties our divine Matter has enjoined } the 
pleafures, I fay, refulting hence, are infinitely prefera- 
ble to thofe which the gratification of our irregular ap- 
petites in their ut moil extent can pofiibiy afford. And 

y o; 



2C4 TH S DUTY OF CONSIDERATION 

O ! what heart can frame a conception of one thon- 
fandth part of the blifs which awaits the Chriftian in 
, the future world ! But I forbear enlarging here, and 
Ttfer you to the account given in the former difcourfe ? 
of the bleffednefs of thofe whofe- hearts having been 
made honeft and good, hear the word, keep it, and 
bring forth 'fruit with patience. 

I have only to add, before I difmifs the prefent ar- 
gument, that as the duty of confideration is every 
where enjoined in the book of God, fo it is enforced 
by the mod powerful monies and encouraging pro- 
mifes. Time would fail me were I to recite them. It 
il i all mfrrce to ecmprife them all in the expreffive 
words of Ifaiah the evangelical prophet, and Paul the 
great apoftle of the Gentiles. " Hear, and your fouls 
mall live fays the former ) " Confider what I fay, 
^and the Lord give you underftanding in all things f , n 
is the language of the latter. 

And now to clofe the whole. " Who hath ears to 
hear, let him hear/'' Such is the language of reafcn^ 
confcience, minifters, the holy Scriptures, and the 
Lord Jefus Chrift himfelf. And (hall the united 
voice of thefe your beft friends be rejected ? Shall an 
exhortation moft reafonable in itfelf, and addreffed to 
you with the greater! earneftnefs, affeclion and folern- 
mty, be treated with contempt ? Have you no regard 
to decency and good manners h — no fenfe of perfonal 
obligation to thofe y/ho wifti you well, and with tears 
befeech you to do juitice to yourfelves ? — no convic- 
tion that what is required of you is juft and prudent r" 
—no prefumption in your breads that preaching may 
poffibly be a divine institution ? — no apprehenfion that 
the matters you are exhorted to coniider and enquire 

into 

# Ifa.lv. 3. I % Tim.ii. 7. 



EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED, 2$$ 

Into, may poffibly be true and of the higheft moment ? 
—no diicernment that the confide ring them is necefia- 
ry to your pronouncing definitively on them ? — no jea- 
loufy of your own hearts, that they may deceive you ' 7 
of the world, that it may impofe upon you \ and of the 
powers of darknefs, that they may be plotting your 
iuin ? — no wiftv to approve yourfelves to Almighty 
God, no dread of his difpleafure ? — no fenfe of the 
horrid bafenefs and ingratitude of treading under foot 
the Son of God, and doing defpite to the Spirit of 
grace ? In fine, are you fo loft to all fenfe of your own 
intereft, as to be willing to forego the fubftantial com- 
forts of religion here, and the tranfporting joys of hea- 
ven hereafier \ and to endure the tremendous frowns 
of your provoked Judge on the great day of account, 
and the reproaches of your own guilty consciences in 
that place of torment prepared for the damned ? God 
forbid that fuch fhould be your character ! We hope 
better things of you, and things that accompany falva- 
tion, though we thus fpeak. 

We befeech you then, by the tendernefs we flatter 
ourfelves you ftill have for us \ by the good will you 
owe to your Chriftian friends who pity you and pray 
for you \ by the mercies of God, the bowels of Chrift, 
and the companions of the ever-blelTed-Spirit $ by all, 
in a word, that is dear to you here and hereafter j to 
confider thefe things. " Who hath ears to hear, let 
him hear." - 



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